The JRPG genre is one of the best out there, as you can almost assure you’re going to be diving headfirst into hundreds of hours of a magical world that is overflowing with engaging combat, tremendous world-building, and, of course, some of the best characters in all of gaming, making you want to go to the ends of the earth to protect them at all costs.
And while that’s the case for most titles in the genre, some are only interesting for specific party members, having them serve as your guiding star throughout the entirety of your playthrough. However, in other cases, some party members are so strong that they quite literally carry you through each combat encounter, making everything feel much safer in the grand scheme of things!
Magilou
Tales Of Berseria
While the Tales Of series is known for its excellent cast of characters, engaging combat, and skits that help you relate and care for everyone even more, Tales of Berseria may be the best of the best when it comes to its characters, with Magilou being a standout. However, the downside is that she joins pretty late in your journey, but she more than makes up for it by being one of the strongest characters in the game.
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Not only can she literally carry late-game encounters with a solid build, but her skits, backstory, and side-quests are all top-notch, making everyone instantly fall for her the moment she’s recruited. It can be dang-near impossible to introduce a character so late in a JRPG and have players shake things up, but she’s the exception to that rule!
Erik
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes Of An Elusive Age
Dragon Quest is another series with excellent party members, and Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age is no exception, as its characters more or less carry the entire game. That’s not to say that the narrative or gameplay are bad by any means, but they absolutely knocked it out of the park with every single party member, with Erik being a prime example of that.
And, unlike our last entry, Erik joins your team relatively early on, making him a ride-or-die for dozens upon dozens of hours, giving you ample time to draw out his true strength and dive into his remarkable backstory. Again, every character in this game is top-notch, but there’s something about Erik that makes him shine a bit brighter than the rest, helping propel you through the early goings of the game until you’re suddenly approaching a hundred hours!
Wazy Hemisphere
The Legend Of Heroes: Trails To Azure
Speaking of one of the best characters in JRPGs, next up is Wazy Hemisphere, who is arguably one of the best characters in The Legend of Heroes series, and is undeniably the best in Trails to Azure. Sure, this game stands on its own as one of the best in the series, but we’re confident it wouldn’t be nearly as praised if not for Wazy, as he single-handedly draws you in from the moment you meet him.
Despite first meeting him in Trails from Zero, he doesn’t really get to shine until Trails to Azure, where he captures everyone’s hearts. Wazy is an exceptionally well-written character who can also be quite potent in combat with focused builds and team compositions. If it weren’t for Wazy, we don’t know if we would have been nearly as invested in Trails to Azure as we were, and we’re glad he gave us, and likely many others, the push needed to see that epic adventure to its end!
Meru
Legend Of Dragoon
Ah, Legend of Dragoon, a classic case of a JRPG that doesn’t quite hold up gameplay-wise, as it can quickly become quite tedious, while also having an okay-ish narrative. Still, despite all that, Meru puts this cult classic on her back, allowing you to push through that tedium to find that Legend of Dragoon is actually a pretty solid and competent game underneath it all.
Sure, it has its problems, but Meru isn’t one of them, as she has the potential to eviscerate her enemies, especially once she obtains her Spirit of the Blue Sea Dragon Dragoon Spirit. Her bubbly and cheerful personality is contagious from the moment you meet her, and will remain your source of strength even in the game’s roughest spots (looking at you, Forbidden Land)!
Meracle Chamlotte
Star Ocean: The Last Hope
Another title that may not hold up all that well by today’s standards is Star Ocean: The Last Hope, as its overarching story is kind of all over the place, making it often hard to follow at times. However, in typical JRPG fashion, its combat system and characters more than make up for it. Or, to be a bit more specific, Meracle Chamlotte makes up for it, as she is undeniably one of the more unique and potent party members you will meet on your journey.
We get it, Meracle’s personality and overall narrative may not be the strongest in the game, but she will carry you through pretty much any combat encounter you throw at her. She’s already very strong the moment she joins your party, and only gets stronger, essentially allowing her to make the final boss completely trivial. And that’s even before you get into more specialized or focused builds!
Momo
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes
In a similar fashion, our next entry is Momo from Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, who may be the most powerful character on this entire list, not only from a lore and story perspective, but regarding gameplay as well. Despite his adorable design, he is an absolute menace in combat and will allow you to quickly breeze through every combat encounter after he joins your party.
Yes, Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes is far from the perfect JRPG, and is a far cry from the greatness that is Suikoden, but they absolutely crushed Momo’s design and backstory. Once you meet Momo and get more and more crumbs of who they are and their backstory, while also annihilating everything in sight with them, it’s hard not to see the game through, despite all of its flaws!
Ryuji Sakamoto
Persona 5 Royal
Lastly, we have our GOAT, Ryuji Sakamoto from Persona 5 Royal, to close out the list. You will often hear and read takes from die-hard Persona fans state that Persona 5 is the weakest of the bunch in regards to its story and party members, and while there’s some truth to that, the other Personas don’t have Ryuji, so, uh, checkmate. We guess. In all seriousness, how can you not love this character from the moment you meet him at the start of the game?
Ryuji Sakamoto is the definition of ‘ride or die’ and is, hands down, the best character in Persona 5. His mischievous and disobedient personality fits hand in hand with the Phantom Thieves’ goals, and seeing the unbreakable bond form between him and Joker as they quickly become best friends is wholesome to behold. Just as much as he has our back, we have his. He also kicks ass in combat, so he also has that going for him. He’s just the best of the best!
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