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.

One final hurrah for the Stars of Destiny came out of Konami, though it wasn’t officially intended as such. Then the DS got a game which didn’t deserve all the negativity it received, but as a spinoff couldn’t do everything fans wanted. There isn’t much left to talk about after that one, unfortunately. (Suikoden, Part 3)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 123: “Konami’s Trail of Tears” appeared first on RPGamer.

BioWare wanted to convey the ineffectual nature of the human race when compared to other species populating the galaxy. This naturally took the form of having a human lead others into combat, while undertaking decisions that might one day have galactic consequences. Perhaps the human race doesn’t deserve all the scorn it receives if that’s the case. (Mass Effect 1)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 122: “Follow the Captain Shepard” appeared first on RPGamer.

Ah, Sony, holder of many now-dormant IPs. One of those was a pretty good tactical series that hasn’t been seen for a number of years, but did a lot of interesting things along the way. Not all of those things were successful, but the effort makes for a substantive chat. (Arc the Lad)

The post RPG Backtrack – Episode 121: “The Rock Goes in an Arc” appeared first on RPGamer.