While Final Fantasy spawns a lot of heated talk, relatively little of it is devoted to the earliest entries. The NES era spawned the series, but going back to that trio with a more modern mindset isn’t the smoothest of rides. (Final Fantasy I, II, III)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 133: “It Wasn’t Always an Oxymoron” appeared first on RPGamer.

The bar for bringing Legend of Heroes titles across the Pacific had been set rather low, making it easy for XSEED to impress gamers when it took over the localization for another installment. Of course, having a quality game at the core also helped. (Trails in the Sky)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 132: “Then Some Heroes Come Along” appeared first on RPGamer.

Dealing with games made by tri-Ace usually requires a bit of effort, and in recent years it hasn’t gotten any easier. Maybe this attempt to make sense of Infinite Undiscovery and Resonance of Fate is successful, and maybe it isn’t, but at least the result should be informative.

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 131: “Infinite Inapplicability” appeared first on RPGamer.

Yasumi Matsuno’s work includes a title from the late PS1 era that defies easy explanation. Attempting to describe it anyway may require a flow chart to keep track of all the concepts, but no one will confuse Vagrant Story with any other game.

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 130: “Night of the Living Vagrants” appeared first on RPGamer.

There’s something addictive about walking forward while beating everyone encountered along the way into a bloody pulp. This procedure has occasionally been used in titles with some RPG tenets, and talking about them proved a bloody good time. (River City Ransom, Guardian Heroes, Chronicles of Mystara, Code of Princess)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 129: “My Fist Your Face” appeared first on RPGamer.

It’s time once again to venture into the vast Megami Tensei universe. This particular grouping involves tactical maneuvers of people and their demons summoned through portable electronics, with time ticking down on the life of everyone encountered. (Devil Survivor)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 128: “House of the Devil” appeared first on RPGamer.

Get set for some more explosive outer space adventures courtesy of BioWare, as the second installment of its massive trilogy comes under scrutiny. Does it cheapen the value of returning from the dead? (Mass Effect 2)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 127: “Sheparding the Flock” appeared first on RPGamer.

Of course there are people and things to shoot around New Vegas, but this most recent incarnation of the Fallout universe doesn’t stop there. Enjoy going down the Vegas Strip and taking in all its scenic delights between the killing sprees in the desert.

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 126: “What Happens in New Vegas, Stays in New Vegas” appeared first on RPGamer.

The start of BioWare’s ongoing series brought a lot of thoughts to the surface. Some are profound and challenging, others lewd and depraved, with plenty occupying some kind of middle ground in this episode. (Dragon Age: Origins)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 125: “How Many Dragons in an Age?” appeared first on RPGamer.

In the world of gaming, anything that can be described as educational is a definite turn-off. First-person dungeon crawlers count as learning experiences in a number of ways, but one series transformed cartography into something addictive. Its other parts do a pretty good job too. (Etrian Odyssey)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 124: “Mapping the World Tree” appeared first on RPGamer.