Pica-Ludica: I can compile a selection of titles you might want to look into, if you're interested?
natronosaurus: I am interested. I don't mind reading a bunch of text, and I prefer the original Japanese audio (really think dubs are terrible). I think most good games in the genre offer that stuff as standard.
[BUNCH OF TEXT INCOMING]
Availability of Japanese voice overs is sadly
not a standard. Or at least, it wasn't in the PS2 era. Most of the time, the Japanese voices would not be included at all. I must admit that doesn't bother me that much, because while the English dubs can be a bit cheesy at times, I never found that distracting to the point where I couldn't enjoy the story. Moreover, some RPGs actually have excellent dubs (in my opinion, that is; YMMV :) ).
Here's a selection of PS2 titles that might interest you. It's not exhaustive, since I've only included games I own
and have played enough to form an opinion about them (yes, my backlog extends to the PS2 era xD).
Japanese voice over included:
*
Atelier Iris - Atelier Iris 2 - Atelier Iris 3 [One of my favourite series; 2D graphics, tons of charm, great upbeat music, focus on crafting, turn-based combat; New Game +]
*
Mana Khemia : Alchemists of Al Revis [Spiritual successor to the Atelier Iris trilogy, shares its qualities and builds up on them; multiple endings, New Game +]
*
Ar Tonelico: Melody of Elemia [Another Gust game, also similar to the Atelier Iris trilogy, but without the focus on crafting, and a relationship-building mechanic instead]
*
Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories [Tactical RPG by Nippon Ichi; 2D graphics; very solid tactical battles, wacky humour and atmosphere; multiple endings and post-game content]
Dubbed voice over only (? = not sure whether Japanese voices are available):
*
La Pucelle Tactics (?) - Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (?) - Phantom Brave (?) - Makai Kingdom (?) [Nippon Ichi Tactical RPGs; 2D graphics, tactical battles with varying tweaks from game to game; wacky and light hearted atmosphere, although Phantom Brave has a more bitter-sweet story; most have multiple endings and post-game content]
*
Soul Nomad and the World Eaters (?) [Nippon Ichi Tactical RPG; 2D graphics, tactical mechanics reminiscent of Ogre Battle, multiple story paths and endings, much darker and edgier story than other Nippon Ichi T-RPGs, post game content]
*
Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits [successor of the venerable Arc the Lad trilogy; gridless tactical RPG; switches between a somewhat bland story for human side a much more interesting demon side]
*
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter [Tactical RPG by Capcom; a great departure from its roots; gridless tactical combat; gritty post apocalyptic setting, focus on multiple replays - it's actually an in-built mechanic of the game and brilliantly executed]
*
Dragon Quest 8 [Stays very close to its roots in terms of gameplay; turn based combat, gorgeous Level-5 cellshading, 3D environment, great music]
*
Jade Cocoon 2 [Pokemon-like with a tribal setting and an advanced breeding mechanic; turn based combat with a tactical element thrown in; artistic design by Katsuya Kondo, character designer for Studio Ghibli]
*
Final Fantasy X [Turn-based combat
without ATB, extremely linear story, unique levelling system, and a very Nomura artistic design; state of the art Squeenix visuals]
*
Final Fantasy XII [Feels and plays like an MMO with ATB, set in Matsuno's Ivalice and as such is more reminiscent of FF Tactics in terms of mood and artistic design; state of the art Squeenix visuals, absolutely epic soundtrack by Sakimoto]
*
Wild ARMs 3 - Wild ARMs 5 [Turn based RPGs with a strong focus on puzzle solving; unique western setting with great soundtrack; haven't played WA4, sadly T^T]
*
Valkyrie Profile: Silmeria [Sequel to tri-Ace masterpiece Valkyrie Profile; 2.5D graphics, turn-based combat with lots of tactical elements thrown in; deep story, very melancholy mood; steep learning/difficulty curve; glorious soundtrack by Sakuraba]
*
Star Ocean: Till the End of Time [part of the tri-Ace Star Ocean series; real time fast paced combat with battle transitions; focus on crafting; steep learning/difficulty curve; multiple endings; Private Action system - optional/hidden cut scenes with multiple choices that influence which ending you get; New Game +, post game content]
*
Dark Cloud - Dark Chronicle 2 [Action RPGs by Level 5; strong focus on weapon crafting, dungeon crawling and world building; lovely cellshaded graphics]
*
Odin Sphere [Action RPG by Vanillaware; beat them all combat, multiple endings and unique storytelling with intertwining storylines; absolutely gobsmackingly GORGEOUS 2D graphics - the most beautiful game on the PS2, in my opinion; New Game +]
*
Kingdom Hearts - Kingdom Hearts 2 [Action RPG by Squeenix; Disney meets Final Fantasy meets Tetsuya Nomura; very fun and varied gameplay mixing comabta with platforming and exploration, a trip down nostalgia lane for both Disney and FF lovers]
*
Rogue Galaxy [Action RPG by Level 5; strong focus on crafting, plays somewhat like FFXII but with a much more anime/sci-fi flair; beautiful cellshaded graphics, lots side-questing/faffing about; New Game +, post game content]
*
Ys - The Ark of Napishtim [Action RPG, part of the venerable Ys series; very old-school no-nonsense gameplay, short and effective]
*
Ôkami [Zelda-like by Clover/Capcom; okay, I'm stretching the whole "RPG" thing here, but Okami does have RPG elements, and it deserves to be mentioned and above all played because it's a masterpiece; it's basically a Zelda game, but set in mythical feudal Japan, with gorgeous stylized 2D graphics and a terrific and a traditional Japanese soundtrack; you play as the Sun Goddess Amaterasu incarnated into a white wolf, and you learn Sumi-e inspired brush techniques to fight with and to repair/change the world with; if you love Japanese culture, you will adore this game]
Sorry for the wall of text, I've tried to keep things as readable as possible. ^^; If you want any precisions on any of those games, I'll be happy to provide. :)
