Summary
JRPGsare incredibly deep games, combining long stories with in-depth combat anddifficult boss fights.This genre has made itself known to players across the world as one of the best narrative and mechanical experiences a game can provide, with players often becoming engaged beyond the main story by the central characters that make up the party and world.
Yet even among JRPGs withincredibly deep lore, what keeps players coming back will be the gameplay time and time again. If a game has frustrating combat or bland enemy design, then even the best story in the world can’t save them. These games in particular swing the other way,offering incredibly challenging but equally satisfying gameplaythat defines the title as much as its story and world does.
Alliance Aliveis an incredibly solid staple of the 3DS, Nintendo Switch, and PC games library. Going into this game, players can reliably expect a good time with a cast of vibrant, unique, and compelling characters alongside a very interesting world with unique lore.The Daemons in this gameand their unique designs, along with the interesting rules that divide them, beastfolk, and humans, all make for some highly engaging world-building that pushes the story along.
However, while the early game is mostly standard in terms of difficulty, around the middle of the game there is a tremendous difficulty spike. A boss here is so powerful it can essentially soft-lock players out of the game, forcing them to go back, grind for gear (and very importantly: guild members!), and then try again when they’re better equipped.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Fire Emblem: Three Housesis a title that will draw players in with some fantastic character work and an addictive, modular set of gameplay mechanics that has players shape their units into a myriad of powerful warriors and casters.
On higher difficulties, every unit will need to be intricately tweaked to make sure they are optimized for battle. Taking a risk with an unfavorable match-up against an enemy unit is a sure way to have a dear student die on the battlefield.
TheSaGaseries is known in general for its incredible difficulty, enticing players not only with its challenge but with the vibrant settings and unique spin on JRPG gameplay that people will find in few other games.SaGatitles often take a place amongthe hardest titleson any generation of console, andRomancing SaGa 3is renowned as being one of the hardest retro JRPGs available on the Switch today.
This game has not just one, but several difficulty curves, beginning with the early game and the lack of resources and skills players will have, then increasing dramatically again once players have gotten their footing with the game’s many mechanics.
Genre
Adventure, JRPG
Etrian Odysseyhas never been regarded as a series with easy games, buttheOrigins Collectioncombines the first three titles as HD remastered experiences. These games pull no punches, and efficient party composition is essential for getting through some of the harder dungeons towards the late game of every entry. Working in this title’s favor is that the party composition system is still incredibly versatile and engaging.
With such a focused scope, it’s hardly a surprise that theEtrian Odyssey Origins Collectionis one of the hardest titles available on the Switch. The entire crux of the game is the series of steadily more challenging labyrinths to explore, map out, and survive.
The most recentSMTreleased,Shin Megami Tensei 5proves to be difficult from the first boss fight, especially for players who have not paid attention to the way combat and other mechanics work. Elemental affinities, utilizing extra turns and items, and paying attention to overall demon level are all things to keep track of from the first fight onwards.
Even for those who have gotten a hold of the mechanics, this game holds some of the most challenging battles of the entire series in its repertoire. Towards the late game, players can expect to do a lot of grinding (or farming) to ensure they can take on a gauntlet of colossal deities.
Before players have even cast their first spell in this game,Tactics Ogre Reborn’sfirst challenge is keeping track of the story. There’s a lot of political intrigue and lore to unpack.
For those who can manage the story, this may well be Square Enix’s opus in the strategy JRPG genre, witha fantastic branching narrativeand incredible unit diversity. However, between the effects of elements in the game, the way combat justworks, the beefy HP of almost every enemy, and a steep learning curve, this is one of the most difficult JRPGs on the Switch, bar none.
Amongthe hardestShin Megami Tenseigames in the whole series,Nocturnedoes not spare players from a ceaseless and difficult journey as they continue to forge their demi fiend and his party of demons. In a game series that is already known for its difficulty,Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturnestands out as the most expansive and hardest of the lot.
Players can expect to grind and optimize their way through the entire game, especially to clear some of the harder optional battles or get into New Game+ content, which will be virtually impossible without a well-designed party and build.
