Best Action JRPGs For Challenging Combat

Summary

• The action JRPG genre has shifted to focus on real-time combat, leading to a rise in more complex and difficult games every year.
• Neo: The World Ends With You, Vagrant Story, and NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… are action JRPGs with challenging combat systems and unique gameplay elements.
• Scarlet Nexus, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition, and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth offer thrilling, challenging combat experiences in the action JRPG genre.

Action JRPGs have had a fascinating rise to the top, as the traditional turn-based JRPGs from the 1990s and early 2000s were a dominant force that showed no signs of slowing down. But with the advent of new, more powerful hardware, the options for developers started to expand, and they were able to incorporate combat systems with a harder focus on real-time combat. This shift has resulted in a lot more action JRPGs released every single year, proving that this massively popular genre is here to stay.

It hasn’t completely eliminated traditional JRPGs, as they still exist in abundance, but the action JRPG has become one of the industry’s most successful genres. Chief among them, the more complex, difficult action JRPGs have become a huge part of video games. These difficult, highly engaging combat systems have seen a steady rise to the top, as even franchises that cut their teeth in turn-based combat, such as Final Fantasy, have embraced them. These action JRPGs have been ranked on their difficulty and how well they escalate the challenge, as well as their level design.

8

NEO: The World Ends With You

Long-Anticipated Sequel To DS RPG Is A Difficult Experience

Despite being one of the most impressive and innovative games to launch on the original DS, The World Ends With You went without a sequel for over a decade. It took roughly thirteen years, but Neo: The World Ends With You was finally released in 2021, and it turned out to be worth the wait. While the original utilized 2D environments and sprite art, the sequel is fully 3D and embraces Square’s recent action-focused combat styles.

Making use of a fun pin system, where adding different ones to the party can increase damage and add new attacks, Neo’s combat feels fast-paced and frantic. It can become quite challenging, even in the early part of the game, as the chaotic battles unfold at a rapid pace. Neo also does an excellent job at escalating the challenge, as the journey through Shibuya is fraught with difficult enemies and some unique boss encounters.

7

Vagrant Story

Unique PS1 Action JRPG Features Robust Customization System

Taking place in the Final Fantasy spin-off world known as Ivalice, Vagrant Story is one of the most fascinating action JRPGs on the original PlayStation, as its robust weapon customization and crafting system feels remarkably fresh even today. And those weapons will come in handy throughout the game, as Vagrant Story is a challenging, but extremely rewarding experience.

Vagrant Story is a deeply challenging, compelling title that casts players as Ashley Riot, a Riskbreaker who explores the fictional city of Lea Monde to uncover a conspiracy. Combat is surprisingly great for a game from this era, as targeting body parts adds an extra layer of strategy, which is helpful against enemies that routinely outnumber Ashley. Bosses are also a highlight, as they evolve from human enemies into large-scale, tremendously dangerous monsters.

6

NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139…

Remaster Of Yoko Taro’s Action JRPG Features Open-World Challenge

Following the conclusion of the Drakengard series, creator Yoko Taro set out to create an entirely new franchise. Taking place in the post-apocalyptic future of Drakengard, this difficult action JRPG was first released on the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010, then remastered for modern hardware in 2021 as NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139.

With its fluid, highly energetic hack-and-slash combat system, NieR Replicant takes place in an expansive open world that features hostile environments and even more dangerous enemies. The player is often surrounded, as the game consistently throws a wide variety of enemies at them. And the further the player gets into it, the more NieR Replicant challenges them both with increasingly difficult combat encounters, and unique forms of gameplay that can take the form of 2D bullet hell sequences.

5

Parasite Eve 2

Survival Horror JRPG Showcases Escalating Challenge On PS1

Development of Parasite Eve 2 commenced not long after the first game and featured a brand-new team that had previously worked on the Resident Evil franchise. Those influences are felt immediately, as Parasite Eve 2 plays much faster than its predecessor, with an addictive combat system that prioritizes gunplay mixed with magic.

Targeting enemies feels responsive and quick, while firing the large variety of weapons produces excellent feedback mixed with outstanding sound design. And thanks to its use of 2D pre-rendered backgrounds, Parasite Eve 2‘s enemy encounters feel even more tense and challenging. Some of the bosses mix huge scale with challenge, a feat that is still impressive for the older PS1 hardware. This outstanding action JRPG is one of the PS1’s most difficult, yet highly entertaining games.

4

Scarlet Nexus

Stylish Action JRPG Is One Of The Most Challenging On The Market

Led by some former members of the Tales’ development team, Scarlet Nexus is a fantastic action JRPG with two protagonists and a slick, energetic combat system. Taking place in a futuristic sci-fi world, Scarlet Nexus explores the unnerving clash between organic and synthetic life, as the monsters and creatures often blur the lines between the two.

Following the adventures of a group of heroes in conflict with the Others, Scarlet Nexus is built around utilizing all the heroes during battle thanks to a psychic link. Connecting with other party members gives the player access to their abilities, which allows for slowing down time and hurling objects at enemies, among others. Scarlet Nexus creates a fun sense of chaos during battles, as switching between links adds a unique layer of strategy, while the bosses are fantastic. In an industry filled with difficult action JRPGs, Scarlet Nexus ranks among one of the most thrilling and challenging on the market today.

3

Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition

MMO-Influenced JRPG Features Intense Combat And Huge Open World

Following its debut on the Wii in 2011, Xenoblade Chronicles became one of the console’s most popular titles, which spawned an entire franchise and a high-definition remaster for the Switch in 2020. Improving on the original game in every single way, it also retained one of the best aspects of it, which was its outstanding combat system. This outstanding action JRPG features the story of Shulk, as he attempts to navigate his destiny while learning about the ongoing war between the Bionis and the Mechonis.

It’s a good thing, as the continuously evolving difficulty of Xenoblade Chronicles is one of its best features. From its intense opening moments that chronicle a Mechon invasion of Colony 9, all the way to its final confrontation with Zanza, Xenoblade Chronicles expertly crafts a rising challenge. The pacing is perfect, as the initial encounter with the Mechon army gives way to an emotional resonance that makes hunting them down have a lot more weight. Wandering its large, open landscapes is a time for both introspection and fear, as towering Mechon and horrific beasts await the player at every turn. Meanwhile, the epic boss battles add a lot of meaty challenges, as this 70-plus hour action JRPG is one of the most challenging that one can find today.

2

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

Final Fantasy Embraces Action-Based Combat

The original Final Fantasy 7 is one of the forerunners of the traditional turn-based JRPG, but in the twenty-plus years that have passed since it first launched in 1997, Square has made a steady transition into more action-focused systems. And when it came time to put a remake of the PS1 classic into production, Square went full steam ahead and produced what is one of the most satisfying combat systems on the market today. In the second chapter of the proposed remake trilogy, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the furious, high-octane battles from the first chapter feel better than ever. Swapping between party members is quick and easy while using the wide range of special attacks also feels excellent.

In the world of Gaia, as Cloud leads the crew on a journey to the Forgotten Capital, the flexibility and effectiveness of that combat system come into play in a big way. Hostile monsters roam the lush landscape, while epic boss battles unfold through multiple phases that put the player’s skills to the test. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is filled with dangerous encounters, tough bosses, and a combat system that requires constant attention to tiny details to succeed. Building the ATB gauge, then using it either to heal or perform a special attack brings its own strategy to these intense battles, which plays into the overall mayhem that Rebirth creates with its fights.

1

NieR: Automata

Sequel To 2010 Action JRPG Improves On The Original In Every Way

Despite critical praise, the sales of the original NieR fell below expectations, causing Square Enix to say no to Yoko Taro in regard to a sequel. But with some convincing of its cult-like fanbase, Square teamed up with PlatinumGames in order to create a sequel, NieR: Automata, which launched in 2017. It was also recently remastered for Nintendo Switch, making it easier than ever to experience today.

Continuing where NieR left off, Automata takes place thousands of years later, in a post-apocalyptic world teeming with enemies, bosses, and a fantastic sense of scale. NieR: Automata makes use of PlatinumGames’ trademark style of fast-paced, furious hack-and-slash combat. And this combat doesn’t just happen in its large, open fields, as it also unfolds from different perspectives. Automata is a game about constantly changing the way a player thinks about combat, as it utilizes 2D top-down and side-scrolling perspectives. Its unique enemy design, escalating difficulty, and outstanding world design all feed into the same objective, of challenging the player in a variety of unique ways.