Top 10 Hardest JRPGs I've Ever Beaten

[@ErickLandonRPG]

Here is part 2, ten more of the hardest JRPGs I've ever beaten! kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqTagqipmtJplZo

[@6fingers_gaming]

Top 10 jrpg’s with the best post game.

[@emvatomix]

This

[@dondoraemon6090]

Yes

[@sarapelinq6710]

Do you have any exemples?

[@SaladPizzaRestaurant]

Disgaea

[@snakeeyes5594]

Great idea!

[@maskedbadass6802]

For anyone struggling with Shin Megami Tensei Devil Survivor, it is all about not getting attached to the demons on your team because you need to change to better versions as you level up and unlock more. You have to pay close attention to their unique abilities based on their type and switch for example to the high movement demons when trying to escort weaklings that are far away. Also, you have to make sure to constantly target the enemies to learn their abilities because some of them make certain levels way easier.

[@molniya2807]

It's such a good game, too! I think it has aged well, as has it's sequel. Highly recommend giving them a shot

[@cr3d294]

I always considered games that require grinding to be poorly designed. If all you need to do is be a high enough level to do enough damage to the enemy or withstand their attacks; that's not very intelligent or thoughtful design. You're simply setting a bar and telling the player to reach that bar or die. It's not challenging, it's difficult. There's a difference.

[@reinaconsejo]

it's neither challenging nor difficult. it's a ridiculous borderline on cheating time waster.

[@jokerkenny1801]

Grinding is cheating if anything. Some games more fun less you grind, more strats required.

[@iLLBiLLsRoastBeats]

He didn’t say the most challenging games. He said the hardest

[@AzureKyle]

Love how most of the footage from Code Vein was the Cathedral of Sacred Blood, the worst area of the game.

[@Sutchii_]

That area made me put down the game for the time being. It’s pretty confusing

[@AzureKyle]

@@Sutchii_ I had a walkthrough, so it wasn't as confusing for me

[@kiddmode]

I loved that area, couldn't put it down when I got there hahahah

[@Not-Great-at-Gaming]

"He kicked my ass several times, so I gave up". That sounds way too familiar, as in half the games I've played.

[@OtakuDeju]

Disgeae games are made for grinding. Those games make grinding an art. But I always thought that the first game was the easiest because of how early you can pluck out the legendary Longinus from the castle.

[@Harune_dot_exe0]

True dude. Not just grinding the characters but also the weapons. But the story made it fun. Also seeing characters from other games doing a cameo.

[@alrox9760]

That much?... oh well.. at least nintendo is gonna do a free trial of disgaea 5... i guess im gonna try it

[@Harune_dot_exe0]

@@alrox9760 do it. It's free also the story depending on your taste is hilarious. It was a favorite of mine back. Also unlocking the other characters and attacks.

[@EndlessDream]

And that's why I refuse to play a Disgaea game. I know they're grind heavy and they don't respect the player's time.

[@mikevignola4213]

Disgaea is all about manipulating the games systems to work for you. But getting through the main story is usually pretty straightforward, it's the postgame that sucks your time.

[@Ramsey276one]

The stages of RPG gaming Running When you’re outclassed (wrong place?) Struggling When you’re underleved (it will pass) Grinding When you’re even leveled (because reasons?) Stomping When you’re overleved (backtracking/farming?) Where do these games put you ? XD

[@dghhart]

Absolutely LOVE your top 10s. You are such a funny man. Cheers Eric

[@AxeMain]

Weird timing; I just beat Devil Survivor for the first time last night. I almost wanted to cry when it was over because it was so hard

[@WhiteFangofWar]

Congrats. It's a very hard but rewarding game.

[@mochamadcorysaktitriwangsa1398]

Ngl the hardest final boss in SMT 😂

[@Susketchy]

Did you beat metatron

[@AxeMain]

@@Susketchy No I did the neutral route, but the others seem even harder.

[@WhiteFangofWar]

@@mochamadcorysaktitriwangsa1398 I would consider Lucifer from Nocturne or Shekinah from Strange Journey Redux to hold that title.

[@williamhouseholder1558]

Erick is not only a client he is also the president of the hair pullers club of RPG gamers.

[@seanbcusack]

props on beating code vein. that boss you had on twice, and for extra time at the end, that's what did it for me. that was the rage quit moment. the goddamn cathedral level with the teleporting angels, and then that massive-aoe monstrosity in a pin-size area with nowhere to dodge. it was too much. many claps for getting past that and finishing it off.

[@itsdantaylor]

Still as a guy who dabbles in souls games, finding one that gave you the option to have a competant (optional) companion took away SO much of the frustration i felt from other souls games that have made me drop them in the past. I think Code Vein was the FIRST souls game I ever beat.

[@jenergy105]

You made me feel so much better about Final Fantasy XII. I thought I was the only one struggling with it because I see so much praise and very little talk about the difficulty of this frustrating yet fantastic game. If I didn't love the story and the lore of the game I would've given up.

[@gaivsvalerivs5818]

Final Fantasy XII is the hardest Rpg of the series. I quit after the fifth hour.

[@iliveinsideyourhouse3943]

I don't know how y'all find it's hard, it's always about the grinding.

[@mochamadcorysaktitriwangsa1398]

you need to experiment with the skill man. the most complicated ff series. so yeah you need to learn

[@jenergy105]

@@iliveinsideyourhouse3943 I really feel like I have grinded though! Spent countless hours just leveling up and then I met King Bomb o_O. Like someone else said here, I just think I havent nailed down the skill of it and exploiting the combat system

[@sleepycowboy18]

really? it's just grindfest and gambits settings. tho i guess the optional bosses are hard

[@Neenjuh]

“If you can’t figure that out. Forget it, you’re fucked.” Wise words!! 🤣🤣🤣👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@srjohnwinstonlennon]

Chrono Cross is my favorite RPG of all time!!! It's not hard, but it's also not that easy. Taking in consideration the fact that has no levelling system, all you have to do is choose your favorite characters and go on deep in this masterpiece!!!! The only freaking hell battle that made me hate myself and wanted to die was Dario, and even so, I love it.

[@lunyx8147]

Easier still is the final boss if you want the perfect ending. XD

[@Pikachu-qr4yb]

Dario and Miguel man

[@joestallin1842]

The hardest part about this game is getting lost

[@logiclion3570]

literally every rpg on the NES/FAMICOM

[@imabirdo]

Takeshi's challenge is one

[@j0nnyism]

Yeah. Ff3 kills me the last part of the game takes serious grinding and job changes

[@logiclion3570]

@@j0nnyism ff1 & ff2 are way harder espacily ff2 if you know what i mean ○_○

[@BleedForTheWorld]

If you want a hard JRPG, try Vagrant Story. You have to learn the mechanics in that game or it will punish you later on. It's a hidden gem for sure.

[@TheBrutalSax]

I am one of those dudes who didn’t quite learn the weapon crafting, and pretty much fucked myself at the 10 hour mark. Spent time trying to make the right weapons, but they didn’t seem to work. Some bosses I was chipping away like 2hp per hit, and spent a lot of time fighting them and learning the combo timings. I might need to find a good guide coming back into that. It’s a game I thought I understood but didn’t.

[@Ramsey276one]

FULLY AGREE, starter

[@zaxon810]

You must've been doing something wrong if you had problems leveling in Octopath.

[@iambor1393]

Evasive maneuvers throughout the whole game can make a huge effect. You also start to gain levels really really slow around level 45 or so, and you probably wanna be at least 60 for the super boss, so it can be grindy towards the end.

[@sagepirotess6312]

Damm in octopath traveler I started out as the mage. Beat 3 of 4 chapters solo. And 1 of the ancient jobs.

[@louiekroberts]

I love games like Devil Survivor and the first three days I’ve found enjoyable, but I’ve already found that it’s so difficult. You just get so overwhelmed by enemies that constantly heal each other and I’ve heard it only gets harder from there. Maybe one day I’ll pick it up again possibly on easy, but I’m not sure if I can be bothered to go back and try

[@dfc8217]

My #1 would have to be Natural Doctrine, but Devil Survivor MIGHT be #2. Some of those maps were just absurd.

[@jzblue345]

Dude I think devil survivor was the toughest game I've ever encountered for DS i literally gave up and never came back.

[@Berek71182]

The first devil survivor was a pain in the ass. Devil Survivor overclocked and devil survivor 2 are generally much better, thx to the cathedral and more exp/money by grinding. However it gets worse, try the originel SMT strange journey... that's torture. Strange Journey redux however was quite fair.

[@zin2828]

Also... New members won't have any skills Even members that was once in your party, leaves for a moment, then come back with 0 Skills! Lookin' at you Midori So expect fighting 10+ free battles for the ideal skills

[@meowtenjuice5670]

Desu2 is hard but Multi strike/hit + Pierce helps alot

[@Bros_Before_Hee_ho_hos]

I got stuck with Beldr not because i couldnt deal enough damage to him, but because i didnt have the devils fuge with me and couldnt deal any damage at all. I had to restart the whole game, but going through it a 2nd time was easy. Then, i got to Jezebel and I couldnt kill her fast enough and the damage from the lava kept bringing me to low health which made it easier for her to finish me off several times. I decided to takr a break, I came back and i killed her i think, either that or I grinded and fused demons then killed her. The rest was easy, but i didn't kill lucifer too much grinding.

[@wesmeyer1888]

Play Valkyrie Profile Covenant of the Plume.

[@tigmo55]

Thanks for sharing Erick Landon! I love your passion for RPGs man. Awesome video! :) I've been able to conquer Disgaea 2 and Final Fantasy XII and FFXII is certainly one of the more difficult ones out there. Funny enough, the part of the game where you HAVE to summon the correct being in order to open the gate completely stumped me for weeks. How cryptic was that point in the game? Final Fantasy IV for the DS and Dragon Quest II for the NES are certainly two of the most difficult ones I have EVER played. No matter how much you level up, you can still lose...easily (*shivers* as I think of the Rhone Cave in DQII).

[@DjClimamusic]

The one I could not beat the final boss was Shadow Hearts for PS2 :(

[@japanimationman4442]

For Disgaea, Valkyrie Profile 2, and FFXII, I found that going without your full party is easier. You get more XP, and it just works out better in the long run. In FFXII using just one character was basically just cast instant death on anything that moves for 90% of the game, and I had very little trouble with it. I think I got to level 80 something by the end without even grinding or doing any sidequests. VP2 is even easier with just one party member. You're a smaller target so it's easier to avoid enemy attacks. Most bosses I was able to just stay behind and slap around without fear of reprisal. Most Disgaea games I wind up using less than five characters, only using the rest of the team as fodder for throwing geo blocks or something. It keeps them more focused and bottlenecks the enemies more. I dunno why, it just works better for me than trying to manage a huge group.

[@jacobmonks3722]

I haven't played many tough RPGs. I think the one with the most perfectly balanced difficulty curve would be Wild Arms. Never was there a point where I felt overleveled, yet at the same time I never felt like I was consistently struggling. The game is very well balanced to give magic, physical attacks, and weapons a purpose, and the Force meter makes it satisfying to come back from tough spots. It rewards your patience. I love Wild Arms so much. I want to play it again.

[@thomasjodoin-fontaine6945]

I had a very nice time playing Final Fantasy XII. Yes, I grinded it to almost the full potential of every party member, but the skill-license system was nice once you get used to it. Long story short: I invested a lot of time in that game, and loved it through and through. All said, thanks Mr. Landon for all your vids and top 10s. Stay safe!

[@lngoj]

FFXII was the first rpg that gets all the characters at level 99, I found it very easy to get that. Sidequests and the demand for loot influenced this a lot.

[@r3volution]

I always get shocked when your music intro starts, maybe reduce the volume of it ;) Besides that, an amazing video :)

[@mochamadcorysaktitriwangsa1398]

damn that devil survivor is really spot on even though i played the overclock one

[@xtiandg0914]

I do have an advise for people who want play Growlanser IV as someone who finished it, use everything in your arsenal. All your knacks, all your buffs, all your items, all your spell stones, all your money, do not be stingy. You'll need to be aggressive with your resources to give just small enough chance to actually succeed. Also learn how to use every characters, some characters make the game easier and others harder for certain missions.

[@Pimpjira87]

Also don't ignore the arena which has some great rewards(like blessing bell which reduce's a character lv by 10 but they keep their stat gains). As for what you covered already I found the knacks and buffs especially important. Buffs can make a battle a lot easier on the next attempt when you know where the trigger for it is and you can buff everyone in the menu right before.

[@diegomolina8305]

About Devil Survivor: I know Midori could be very anoying xD but later, she got into my main team like a magic offense character. Yuzu as my healer, the protagonist like physical and Amane as the other magic offense character. I ended all the routes, but It was imposible to me to defeat the hidden boss, I mean Lucifer (I dont remember his name). The worst part of the original Ds game its imposible to grew up your demons for a long time. Its just a miracle to got a 99 level demon in that game, and Lucifer is at 99 level, so, you will die for sure. But its an incredible game, i love it. Love its history and its characters.

[@grayaj23]

Disgaea isn't hard, if you know how to exploit the levelling system. You don't need to grind the way you do in a normal game. You can overpower a character so that it can fight mobs twice or three times its level, jack up the experience, go kill one screen of mobs and jump from lvl 10 to lvl 15 in one swing. I know you've got a low opinion of the game and the grind, but learning HOW to grind is so much fun that if you're like most people you have so much fun grinding that the actual story becomes an afterthought. So if you google for "Disgaea 2 Leveling Guide" you can learn all the tricks to jack up weapon stats, character stats, etc. You pretty quickly find that you need to increase the difficulty in order for the game to remain challenging through the story mode.

[@windwaker0rules]

i like to do one lv50 - 80 genius reincarnation to get those 10 points in attack, its like why bother grinding to lv120 before post game when you can go to lv60 once and then level up to lv60 again and have the same stats?

[@theosr93]

Yeah. It's fun & not hard at all.

[@efrenarevalo2025]

All Disgaea games imo is all about exploiting the living shit out of the mechanics and making your units the most OP sob in existence.

[@colbyvanquished7708]

"Escalating like goats on a mountain!" Haha

[@ourdivinemouseoverlord3308]

I beat Arc Rise Fantasia today (I postponed watching this video until after finishing it). The difficulty wasn't so bad since I never lost a boss fight more than once. The hardest JRPG I've ever beaten was The 7th Saga on SNES.

[@abaoaqu1333]

The narration of each difficulty is hilarious because I know the feeling lolol.

[@WhiteFangofWar]

My hardest is probably Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen. It's not only difficult, but its systems actively discourage grinding. Kill an enemy you out-level and the killer's alignment drops. Liberate towns with a low alignment character and your reputation drops. But if you kill all the enemy units in each mission you're guaranteed to out-level the enemy as well as have a very expensive army that will probably put you at a deficit of money each day. Zero in on the enemy base and neglect to finish off enemy divisions, and you quickly find they can restore themselves to full strength instantly by returning to their home base. Then you have the final mission, where enemy troops are literally infinite. Most hero recruits and special items require a guide to get. I suppose it would probably be easier to grind up, destroy your reputation and earn one of the bad endings where you go evil at the end... but that's no victory.

[@matabishippuden6965]

I didnt finish it but it wasn't that hard at least as much as I played. I never put on units that were weak to save money so I never had too little. I put one of my units at every town I deemed significant and if an enemy conquers one of my unguarded ones I just conquer it again and get another tarot. And if an enemy I defeat but not kill runs away I intercept it with a unit further up

[@WhiteFangofWar]

@@matabishippuden6965 It gets harder towards the end. Enemy armies typically consist of 20 divisions or more outnumbering you 2 to 1 at best, and losing a city costs big reputation. There's also a mission towards the end where liberating ANY cities costs reputation and the final bosses are ridiculous, especially Sage Rashidi. I would say Dalhmud Desert is where it starts to get unfair since all the towns are hidden and only flying units can move at a decent pace across desert terrain.

[@matabishippuden6965]

@@WhiteFangofWar oh yeah having flying units was a problem. I didnt get that far in I beat the first diva . As much as I played though it was fairly balanced and fun

[@TimBitten]

Oh, absolutely. Just winning in it is hard enough, but you also have to protect your reputation for certain paths, recruitments, and endings... It’s a nightmare, but it remains one of my top 3 all time favorite games.

[@sufianramli8017]

@@TimBitten Me too. I loved the game but it was fucking HARD

[@zkitty11]

The two games in this video I've beaten are Octopath Traveler and Fire Emblem Thracia 776. Octopath wasn't too hard until the post-game final boss. Beating that boss felt sooo satisfying. And I've beaten Thracia 776 a few times. The first time I played it I used savestates, but after that I didn't. I had a lot more fun on the subsequent playthroughs since I knew what I was doing. I think the hardest jrpg I've beaten is probably Phantasy Star 2 because the dungeons in that game are so confusing! I was playing blind and only looked at a guide a handful of times when I got *really* stuck.

[@samuelbarrios7749]

Eric for octopath you just need to grind in that one cave with the fat cats and use the dancing girls xp buff I love that game I put over 100 hours also thanks for the videos theirs rpgs I’ve never heard about like arc rise or exist archive

[@samuelbarrios7749]

paula that’s exactly what I did I grinder to level 70 and had my fav character have the second classes and prayed I won

[@chrisgoodson9312]

I just finished Arc Rise Fantasia. I wasn't expecting that much beforehand (from reviews) but that game really surprised me. The English dub is horrendous so if possible play a version (patched) with Japanese voices. I put in almost 100 hours all told

[@thecognitiverambler8911]

I felt like the main scenario in Octopath was a joke - with no grinding needed. I felt like a bully just mercilessly pulverizing my way through. Just following the crumb trail of lowest lvl scenarios and it was a cinch. The optional bosses were a deal harder, and the final boss was an absolute monster that all my friends and GF refused to figure out. But I did - and I feel damn proud of myself that I did!

[@x2rmav]

I'm with you on this. Some break Combos are outrighr broken. He probably try to brute force the game, to make it last more time.

[@kintozero3169]

I once went to a party where they were trying to beat an optional boss in Octopath, (I looked it up, looks like Winnehild). It went on for a few hours but they couldn't beat it!

[@thecognitiverambler8911]

@@kintozero3169 *Laughs in "Transfer Rune Sidestep" ;)

[@kennethfelipe823]

Arc Rise Fantasia was one of my favorite games on the Wii. There weren’t many good RPGs on the Wii. I didn’t beat it. I want to go to it again. I just cracked open my WiiU to play Pikmin 3 because I wasn’t about to buy a new one on the Switch.

[@kanagawa85]

Congrats on your 40subs

[@triniking1234]

I gave up on Tear Ring Saga. Kaga was over-doing it.

[@asmodeus58XX]

Fire Emblem only got better after he left. Binding/Bullshit Blade still has the overly large maps and some needless bullshit (say hello to enemy reinforcements that move the very turn they spawn, often killing a character if you're unaware), but of all the games Kaga made, Geneology is the only one I'm even remotely interested in.

[@Q-gf8vb]

@@asmodeus58XX Waifu Emblem**

[@polololo17]

@@Q-gf8vb you mean sakura from fates

[@213AnimeFreak213]

I remember my PS2 FF12 I got hardlock in a boss battle and I can’t go back to grind when I lost (Now I know to have multiple save file mostly due to SMT game and Fire Emblem

[@misterpayah7723]

I loved Arc Rise Fantasia, glad you covered it. Some fights were stupidly hard, especially the bonus bosses, but I never got frustrated because the battle system was so tight. The Defend action actually did something for once in an RPG and it was crucial to properly balance defending and attacking to not get one-shot but also maintain enough AP for the next turn. I never really needed to grind tbh. Very sad the battle system will never get re-used because of the poor reception.

[@YhelloWish]

I love Resonance of Fate but still didn't beat it until today, 52 hours if I remember, I spent so much time on placing color hex for multiply EXP grinding.

[@mikkibermudez4253]

Growlanser 4 isn't hard if you have one amazing skill: Dirty Trick. Get it as soon as you control Remus freely. Getting advanced spell stones early is almost gamebreaking

[@sonicwma0105]

You should try Vestaria Saga. I want to say I was starting to have problems at this chapter where you have to navigate an entire city with a low turn count. Not even sure how I beat that stupid map. Probably a mix of luck, a distant ancestor sacrificing something, and a whole lot of headache medication.

[@martinde-serres8724]

'Arc Rise Fucktasia' - Erick Landon RPG, 2020 :D Keep up the good work and the good puns, Erick!

[@gunneratijuf8915]

7th saga for Super Nintendo was next level hard

[@lennethomega6731]

The Fire Emblem Thrashia chapter 21 of the bridge crumbling after a certain number of turns was an absolute hell, literally it was hell incarnate in the universe. The hardest most difficult fight in srpg history. Screaming with madness meant your were still sane.

[@F_M_M]

Great video, thank you for your share and passion on those titles ;)

[@javilink]

surprised there was no Etrian Odyssey despite from my personal experience it was harder than most of the ones listed here

[@lambertar]

I'd say Covenant of the white plume was a pretty hard game to get through... And I played it the wrong way too. On your first playthrough it is best to sacrifice allies to gain powers for the second playthrough where you can then do it without sacrificing anybody. I didn't do that, tried being a hero right from the start.

[@dannytkong3135]

The original mother is quite hard and such a grind fest

[@JC-cb8oi]

I just beat it a few days ago. It’s REALLY hard. And the random battle frequency is ridiculous. I read that they were working on it till last minute practically and weren’t able to balance the end. It shows!

[@dannytkong3135]

@@JC-cb8oi true the levelling up takes a long time in the game

[@stevenmorton2059]

I'm playing through Mother right now, Personally, I found the random battles to be really.... streaky. There would be stretches where I would go a couple of minutes without an encounter. Then, all of a sudden... BAM!! I would now have an encounter with literally EVERY SINGLE STEP. I'm a veteran of old-school nightmares such as Dragon Warrior II (NES) and The 7th Saga (SNES), so grinding doesn't bug me all that much. PS: If you play The 7th Saga without a difficulty patch, then may whatever deity you worship have mercy on your soul, because that game sure as hell won't.

[@JC-cb8oi]

Steven Morton yes! Exactly like that. I haven’t played 7th Saga but I do plan on playing the DQ trilogy on Switch in the near future. Currently playing through Persona 1 on PSP.

[@stevenmorton2059]

@@JC-cb8oi The newer versions of the first three DQ games aren't nearly as grindy as the original NES versions, but you will still find yourself grinding in a couple of places. Overall, it's not too bad though. Should you ever consider playing 7th Saga, I recommend using the Elnard difficulty patch, unless you're a masochist, that is.

[@awatkhalid9091]

loved this video XD love hearing your rage voice as always XD keep it up Erick

[@SuiteLifeofDioBrando]

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite 2 is the toughest rpg I beat. In terms of turn based games it would be Nocturne.

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

You are a legend

[@HajimotoSaito]

I was surprised you included Code Vein. Frankly since it is a SoulsBorne Game so I expected that you'll make no mention of the obvious or at most as Honorable Mention. Damn it is so entertaining though. I love how you react to these hard as balls games.

[@kuurugichannel7490]

have you tried MS Saga? It's fun and hard as heck despite turn based !!

[@TimBitten]

I beat that one and it’s wayyyyy worth it. The post game dungeon, however, is just ridiculous. I decided I didn’t even care about it and quit. lol

[@kuurugichannel7490]

@@TimBitten idk if the game rotten to the core or what but the dev made it amazing at the beginning only to become chore at the end. The small random battle enemy also not a pushover, the part gathering is so hard. lol.

[@abeldiaz1539]

Devil Survivor is the one I agree with you 100%. Definitely the hardest JRPG I can remember beating.

[@David_Alvarez77]

Not that it is very difficult, but I was wondering if you have played Ring of Red for the PS2? If so, what did you think? I thought it was an interesting mech based alternative-history quasi-strategy or tactical style game. Pretty good too for an early PS2 title.

[@aljongreat1900]

Im fine with hard games being challenging or being grindy, but what i hate the most was the cryptic things that you gotta be a fortune teller to know where to go.

[@zn12914]

I played Devil Survivor 2 on ds, and couldn't even get past the 10 hour or so mark. Probably the hardest jrpg i've ever played

[@nvrmltice]

My first Shin Megami Tensei game was the first Devil Survivor and I had a similar experience. But then I came back, and learned how to actually fuse my demons and such and it wasn't that hard tbh (except the secret super boss battle, I lost that one like 20 times). If you are still willing to play Devil Survivor 2 I recommend you to crack as much skills as possible and to fuse your demons constantly, then the game is not that hard; there are some bosses that will kick your ass a lot tho

[@wasigupitobudiarto7767]

When there is any JRPG game It is always about......Grinding Even for soulsborne, sekiro, Nioh Keep grinding for making you stronger

[@RippahRooJizah]

Sekiro is a bit more skill/timing based. If you are really good at the combat you won't need much of any grinding, just so long as you search out the minibosses. Soulsborne to a lesser extent is the same way.

[@HornPlayer02]

The final optional boss in Octopath Traveler is the hardest thing I've ever done in an RPG. And trust me, I've played a ton of them!

[@Da34Box]

yeah, alphan's 2nd chapter was tough for me, but my strat for the entire game was to buff cyrus and him spam magic

[@frowningmirror8097]

Chrono Cross is pretty easy aside from a few fights. I never expected Lena's unassuming dad Miguel to use kamehamehas, beam sabers and holy magic, especially because he seems like a nice guy on the main story path.

[@onemoregodrejected9369]

12:44 I think the issue is that you have to use specific demons that have either that fly skill tha allows to fly over obstacles thus earning extra movement or other demons that have high range of movement and those are not always the best for battle. Bless Cerberus tought :3

[@maskedbadass6802]

For sure, the most difficult part of that game for me was breaking the mentality of getting attached to certain demons since the game uses it's scenarios to make you ditch the ones that don't have the proper abilities. It just feels so counter-intuitive since most rpgs just give you the party members you need and don't switch them so fast.

[@mikemyers7261]

1) Exist Archive 2) Disgaea 2 3) Final Fantasy XII (not the easier Zodiac Age version) 4) Valkyrie Profile 2 5) Arc Rise Fantasia 6) Code Vein 7) Octopath Traveler 8) SMT Devil Survivor 9) Growlanser Wayfarer of Time 10) Tier Ring Saga

[@heathazegaming8534]

Patience @12:55 lol. Love this video Erick.

[@infasis]

I definitely agree with Growlanser, but not Octopath Traveler. Besides roaming around in areas where it was clear that I wasn't supposed to be. I don't think I ever got my party wiped in that game. Once I started finding secondary classes I just felt too powerful most of the time. Growlanser on the other hand had parts that drove me crazy.

[@itsdantaylor]

I found Valkyria chronicles 2 to be pretty difficult too....but can't recall if it was the difficulty curve or more so some of the frustrating game mechanics (especially the level up system)

[@nr2676]

VC3 was harder, due to increased interception fire and Armored Hunters (dudes with medieval armor and miniguns). Add to this missions with poison gas (decrease HP in each second) = you need be quick.

[@viniciusnascimento1993]

FFXII was the last true Final Fantasy game for me. Took me forever to understand the gambit systens, but once i got it.... the entire game opens up in all aspects. The Gambit system is a genius idea that saddly do not went foward, other games uses the concept in a simpler way, but none of them give the freedom to costumize all the actions of your party in detail. "All > Haste > all the time" "Cure > HP less 40%" > All Chars" "Dispoison > all chars poisoned > MP above 30%" Before all boss battles you have to config the behavior of the party, very exciting stuff. And you are right, the PS4 version is better in almost everything.

[@jaimereupert4247]

13:31 "the only reason I included it was so that I could bitch about again" 😂 that's dedication.

[@Soundaholic92]

Devil Survivor was a nightmare. I beat the final boss by a hair with the last character with no mana and a sliver of health. Super memorable moment, but damn that game was hard

[@MicahW444]

The Japanese FF3 kicked my butt as a kid on the ds. I made it to the final boss and to this day haven’t gone back to finish it

[@m.m.2341]

Get the Shurikens in the Final Dungeon. But yeah, that's pretty mean and not by good Design.

[@MrSpectralfire]

I beat 3 games on this list. FFXII which I didn't think was hard, Octopath Traveler which I thought was well balanced, and Growlanser: Wayfarer of Time which was hard as hell. My only advice for Growlanser is to prioritize learning the passive stat boosts, quicken (or whatever the speed boost skill is), and silence from the rings.

[@michaelchua7427]

This video brings back memories.... Damn. Love your videos my man

[@jedisith3864]

And the cool rank of this channel reaches higher, true legend!

[@lemustache_]

Yea octopath is just psychopath vs traveler until i know where to grind much faster, but i still love it for such a beautiful game.

[@keonhobgood1551]

The secret witch boss in the post game of octopath traveler scared me so much and beat me so bad I haven't turned that game back on.

[@granasaberx]

Octopath Traveler...He's not exactly wrong. I'm 70 hours in and my now finishing up the Post Game content.

[@Докторпарадокс]

"Growlanser is so hard" Devil Survivor: allow me to introduce myself on the serious note in Growlanser you can outsmart your opponents like using Bait and running away while other 3 attack in DS nope you are screwed before I forget I am on Original route after Tricia's death and have no idea where to go can someone help?

[@SeafoamSmiles]

"escalating like goats on a mountain" LOL that is a beautiful analogy. Also I've been playing SMT4 Apocalypse on and off for like 4 years now. I got stuck on a boss that can inflict a lot of status ailments, and rather than go try to find demons that are immune I just decided to brute force it with sheer grinding. I think I'm like 30-40 levels above it now, so hopefully I should be able to coast through the game for a while.

[@TheSPY1997]

Man, you're probably playing the game wrong lol. I think the SMT games generally require you to change strategies and demon rosters constantly in order to deal with different boss gimmicks instead of grinding levels (which is what makes them so exciting for me). 4 Apocalypse has the best combat system out of the 3 mainline SMT games I've played, and the level curve is overall very well balanced. The only serious grinding I had to do was before the final boss, who is awesome, but very tough. Which boss are you stuck on? Just curious

[@SeafoamSmiles]

@@TheSPY1997 lol, yeah. I was stuck on the first Krishna fight. I just didn't really feel like building a new team to meet the needs at the time, so I opted to just grind. The grinding I did really helped in the end, as I've since blasted my way all the way to the end. I've gotten the final boss into Phase Two, but a couple of my demons are still low 80's so they can't survive some of his bigger attacks. I should be able to finish it in the next few days, but if you've got any advice for him I'm all ears.

[@SeafoamSmiles]

@@TheSPY1997 Actually never mind. I just beat it. I was, once again, making it hard on myself by trying to use Asahi in the final battle. Switched to Navarre for his buffs and beat it easily. And I agree, the battle system in this game was so great. Honestly, I really enjoyed the grinding I did. Now I can spend the next 4 Octobers playing SMT III Nocturne Remaster and SMT V. LOL!

[@TheSPY1997]

Oh yeah Krishna was a really pain in the ass with that raga move. He's a great party member for the endgame though, did you end up fusing him? Also, what did you think about the final boss difficulty wise? He gave me a super hard time when I fought him. I'm currently on the final dungeon of Strange Journey Redux, on the new neutral ending. Men Aleph was a huge difficulty spike, but I used grinding DLC speed up the process of leveling up and fuse some great endgame demons (Metatron, Huang Long, Shiva, Trumpeter etc).

[@SeafoamSmiles]

@@TheSPY1997 I never did manage to fuse some of the more interesting boss enemies like Krishna or Mitra Buddha. My final team included Shiva, Huang Long and Mara as well as a few others as potential back ups. The trickiest thing I found with the final boss was trying to keep ahead of him with the buff/debuffs. Navarre was a huge help with that, especially with Doping because none of my current Demons had that. Also understanding how exactly Flynn's Godslayer/weakness creating move works helped a lot. And speaking of Strange Journey Redux, how is that game? I've always thought those space suits were really cool looking, but I was still playing 4A when Redux came out so I never bought it.

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

Hardest turn-based rpg for me is Etrian Odyssey V. Beating that lovecraftian abomination is very tough. The final superboss is also a healing bastard uses skills that blocks either physical or elemental damage.

[@masterquake7]

I remember when I was playing FF12 on PS2 and it took so long to level that I kept my PS2 on for 2 weeks and would grind a couple of hours each day, but of course there were no save points where I was. Then the power went out... Needless to say I didn't play it again for a few months.

[@Flyzoola]

Hey Erick, cool video! I got a question for you: what are you favorite least grindy (as in, that require the least amount of grinding to get through the story) RPGs/JRPGs/Action RPGs?

[@Flyzoola]

Keep up the good work man, your vids are awesome

[@NadiaRayne]

My opinon about Octopath Traveler series it the exact same. It looks and sounds beautiful, but the difficulty turns me off, especially it if it's connected to multiple hours of grinding.

[@neorics]

hmmm FFXII or Valkyrie Profile 2... which should i play next?

[@JoaoVictor-hh9dx]

No "Fiend Matador will fuck you down"... I mean, SMT Nocturne? Also I feel that Agarest should be there somewhere

[@TheAleatoriorandom]

Valkyrie profile 2 is great, but man did I struggle with that one!

[@Ghalion666]

I love valkyrie profile 2. But the ability to split your party up in battle seems to serve little purpose. Has anyone made good use of that mechanic other than a niche use for 1 or 2 bosses?

[@BruhBruh-nt1xl]

Disgaea 2 is very easy when you know how and where to grind for levels, let alone the land of carnage levels where you can just grind in a certain level that can give you at least a thousand level. And if we're not talking about post game, it's very easy to just spam Valkyries or Adell, which has a passive where he's a one-shot wonder to high leveled enemies. And lastly Adell's a fist guy, so he's built with ATK and SPD where he can just dodge the hell out of enemies

[@imabirdo]

Hardcore masochism mode challenge accepted. Jokes on you Erick I like the majority of these games.

[@leandromargoto8051]

I started Devil Survovor (DS version) a few days ago and already feel the pain.

[@hozus.7330]

I saw that General Billford in your TearRing Saga footage. Excellent choice.

[@paulkinder8440]

I've just recently picked up Exist Archive and Code Vein but I've yet to play them yet. Hoping I enjoy them and I can get through them.

[@sagepirotess6312]

Octopath traveler I started as the mage. Solod chapter 1 2 3, and got one of the ancient jobs unlocked. Then went to the warrior guy beat chapter 1 to 4 him and my mage. Easy game.

[@Mr_Sin99]

Amazing Video as always. But Erick u gotta complete Xenogears!!! u will love it, it will change ur life.

[@ralphcoronado1548]

Hardest? Bring Hoshigami: Ruining Blue Earth in!

[@thepowerisyetunknown7710]

So if I'm looking for a challenge similar to devil Survivor, growlancer 4 is the way to go? I mean it in the sense that there's good difficulty (where its about strategy) and then there's bad difficulty (making the level caps higher so you have to grind a lot). So if I consider Devil Survivor good difficulty, any other games like it?

[@wesmeyer1888]

It’s actually made by some of the same people in Careersoft funnily enough.

[@cagedhercules5649]

Awesome thumbnail