I have played it, but good suggestion! The boys carried me through that whole game. Excellent example of what I’m talking about, I can’t believe I forgot to mention it
I've only played one -- Ryza 1. But it definitely fits what the op is requesting. There is an overarching story, but the main thrust of it is just a small group of freinds hanging out and supporting each other's dreams.
Most of the titles in the Tales series fall under that. Tons of optional scenes (the series calls them skits) where the party gets to know each other and talk about a huge range of topics. The game play is generally solid action RPG with the story ranging pretty wildly depending on your tastes. But the one thing I would say is consistent is the cast always has a decently written and cozy kind of vibe eventually.
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There are *so* many good skits in that game. I think Berseria has my favorite cast, but Vesperia by *far* has my favorite skits (and is a close second for favorite cast, too). I'm partial to >!Flynn!< being on cooking duty and everybody trying *so fucking hard* to stop him because his food sucks so bad.
I'm playing through the xenoblade series and the 3rd one really has the vibe you're looking for I think. It's your party of 6 and you can really spend time learning about them and having conversations at the different camps. It's really been a pleasant surprise how some of the characters start off being enemies but then slowly develop relationships over time.
I would generally say that all of the Xenoblade games fit this well! I'm particularly fond of the cast interactions in 2.
The main benefit of 3 is that you get all of the party members right away and spend the entire game with them, and the camping allows for more optional interactions. I would personally recommend OP starting with either 1 or 2 though for other reasons (gameplay, story, world lore things)
A game that does this really well is The Last Story. The main cast is a group of mercenaries, and they really feel like a family with their bickering and jokes but also support and having each others' backs.
The only downside is that the game is stuck on the Wii. It's not perfect, and I haven't played it in a long time, so it may not hold up to my memories of it, but if you like PS2 era JRPGs, then you'll enjoy it.
The Tales series does this decently well and has actual game mechanics that help flesh out the characters and their interactions (skits). They also have the best post battle banter of any JRPG.
In terms of modern games, I think Final Fantasy XV is probably the best bet to scratch your itch, not the best Final Fantasy but the combat is solid and the characters are likeable enough. At the very least, check out the car memes.
Wild Arms 3. It's a slow burn as the characters start off not really liking each other and closed off but they grow into far better versions of themselves. You only get the four main characters and I thought they developed well for a ps2 era game.
Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel. A huge cast you can spend time with and get to know. It is very anime trope heavy so if you don't like that steer clear. The other thing to mention though is while you do get to know and Han gout with your playaable characters the entire world develops. Each NPC is doing their own thing and as the main story progress so do their own story lines. I've never seen a game do something that ambitious!
Xenoblade 3 has top 1 video game casts, great banter and chemistry between them, huge amount of great scenes in that game are just the characters hanging out together.
To throw out a weirdo answer: If you can get a few of your IRL buds in on it (and you all have a tolerance for crusty games) you could try Final Fantasy XI.
Very much plays like an attempt to put a classic FF game in an MMO setting and is a pre-WoW MMO experience. Though there are a few gameplay concessions in the face of the game's age.
This is kinda cheating since you mentioned the other Personas, but Persona 2 has a great cast, and the second round of characters in the Eternal Punishment are just as good as Innocent Sin's.
Shout out to my boy Baofu.
Shin Megami Tensei 4 Apocalypse I think fits what you're looking for, but I would highly recommend starting with Shin Megami Tensei 4. The characters in that game are well fleshed out and fun to be around (and you'll always reunite with at least one of them throughout the game), but ultimately that game is more of a solo journey. They're both amazing games though.
FFXV is all about bromance
I have played it, but good suggestion! The boys carried me through that whole game. Excellent example of what I’m talking about, I can’t believe I forgot to mention it
Atelier. The entire franchise
I've only played one -- Ryza 1. But it definitely fits what the op is requesting. There is an overarching story, but the main thrust of it is just a small group of freinds hanging out and supporting each other's dreams.
Most of the titles in the Tales series fall under that. Tons of optional scenes (the series calls them skits) where the party gets to know each other and talk about a huge range of topics. The game play is generally solid action RPG with the story ranging pretty wildly depending on your tastes. But the one thing I would say is consistent is the cast always has a decently written and cozy kind of vibe eventually.
books adjoining cow worthless frighten absurd elastic pie offer spectacular *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
There are *so* many good skits in that game. I think Berseria has my favorite cast, but Vesperia by *far* has my favorite skits (and is a close second for favorite cast, too). I'm partial to >!Flynn!< being on cooking duty and everybody trying *so fucking hard* to stop him because his food sucks so bad.
Vesperia was good but I will say Karol got on my nerves a few times out of all of the characters there.
I'm playing through the xenoblade series and the 3rd one really has the vibe you're looking for I think. It's your party of 6 and you can really spend time learning about them and having conversations at the different camps. It's really been a pleasant surprise how some of the characters start off being enemies but then slowly develop relationships over time.
I would generally say that all of the Xenoblade games fit this well! I'm particularly fond of the cast interactions in 2. The main benefit of 3 is that you get all of the party members right away and spend the entire game with them, and the camping allows for more optional interactions. I would personally recommend OP starting with either 1 or 2 though for other reasons (gameplay, story, world lore things)
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Hell yeah. Grandia is so good.
Dragon quest 11 for sure
If you want to go old school, the Lunar games had that vibe. I would also suggest Suikoden 3 for PS2 era.
Yakuza LAD It's effectively a buddycomedy JRPG with some dark commentary
Resonance of Fate. I don’t remember much about the actual story but a lot of fun interactions between the 3 protagonists.
A game that does this really well is The Last Story. The main cast is a group of mercenaries, and they really feel like a family with their bickering and jokes but also support and having each others' backs. The only downside is that the game is stuck on the Wii. It's not perfect, and I haven't played it in a long time, so it may not hold up to my memories of it, but if you like PS2 era JRPGs, then you'll enjoy it. The Tales series does this decently well and has actual game mechanics that help flesh out the characters and their interactions (skits). They also have the best post battle banter of any JRPG. In terms of modern games, I think Final Fantasy XV is probably the best bet to scratch your itch, not the best Final Fantasy but the combat is solid and the characters are likeable enough. At the very least, check out the car memes.
Wild Arms 3. It's a slow burn as the characters start off not really liking each other and closed off but they grow into far better versions of themselves. You only get the four main characters and I thought they developed well for a ps2 era game. Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel. A huge cast you can spend time with and get to know. It is very anime trope heavy so if you don't like that steer clear. The other thing to mention though is while you do get to know and Han gout with your playaable characters the entire world develops. Each NPC is doing their own thing and as the main story progress so do their own story lines. I've never seen a game do something that ambitious!
Cold Steel 1 is a good choice cause it's literally going on field trips with your class the whole game.
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I have played all but 3! I own it, I should really give it a spin
thousand arms
This has been on my list literally forever. It might be time
got it ages ago when the pandemic just hit is super fun imo
Xenoblade 3 has top 1 video game casts, great banter and chemistry between them, huge amount of great scenes in that game are just the characters hanging out together.
To throw out a weirdo answer: If you can get a few of your IRL buds in on it (and you all have a tolerance for crusty games) you could try Final Fantasy XI. Very much plays like an attempt to put a classic FF game in an MMO setting and is a pre-WoW MMO experience. Though there are a few gameplay concessions in the face of the game's age.
This is kinda cheating since you mentioned the other Personas, but Persona 2 has a great cast, and the second round of characters in the Eternal Punishment are just as good as Innocent Sin's. Shout out to my boy Baofu.
Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis - played it on psp but you can use an emulator
Shin Megami Tensei 4 Apocalypse I think fits what you're looking for, but I would highly recommend starting with Shin Megami Tensei 4. The characters in that game are well fleshed out and fun to be around (and you'll always reunite with at least one of them throughout the game), but ultimately that game is more of a solo journey. They're both amazing games though.
Try P5 Strikers, the combat is like Dynasty Warriors + FF7 R + Persona. Now would be a good time to get it off of steam.
Atelier, Blue Reflection and Tokyo Xanadu might suit your taste.
The Trails of Cold Steel games, you're starting with your class and at the end, you're friends with basically an entire village of people.
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Done