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JRPG Clichés: Let’s craft the perfect Hero’s Journey!

Featured Image JRPG Clichés

The genre of Japanese role-playing games has a long history — with quite a number of narrative and gameplay elements that we have seen over and over again. Let’s have a look at them in order to design the perfect JRPG experience!

The JRPG formula has been used in thousands of ways, but some of its core features seem to be timeless: For decades, developers have written tales of heroism and translated the protagonist’s adventures into a gameplay loop that basically revolves around increasing various numbers. 

Whether you’re here to be entertained or to create the next masterpiece, we’re about to have a closer look at the beloved, yet sometimes ridiculous clichés that define the genre and see what it would take to create …

The ultimate Carbon Copy

Every other JRPG begins the same way: a peaceful world, a looming threat, an unassuming hero not ready to leave his home town at first, but suddenly all too willing to accept the destiny of becoming a legendary saviour. 

Let’s have a look at the acts (read: building blocks) of the standard JRPG narrative and which gameplay elements we would expect at which point.

Some Boy with a Sword

Every journey must start somewhere, and in the JRPG tradition, that ‘somewhere’ is typically a small, picturesque village surrounded by forests and populated with friendly NPCs and adorable animals. 

Here comes our protagonist:

  • Sex: Male
  • Age: 16
  • Hair: Red-brown, very shaggy
  • Family: No
  • Personality: Little. He doesn’t speak at all, or when he does, he never says anything controversial (that’s often the role of some quirky mascot with way too *much* personality). His only drive is an exaggerated sense of justice, but he’s completely unaware of the whole ‘save the world’ project he’s about to start (probably by accident).
  • Weapon (which he has for some reason): Wooden Sword

After an introduction (sometimes unnecessarily lengthy), the nearby forest becomes the hero’s crash course in adventuring. It’s filled with iconic JRPG staples too:

  • Environment: Lush greenery, chirping birds, some floating lights (whatever that is).
  • Music: Light-hearted, even happy tunes, even though this is a dungeon.
  • Enemies: Definitely Slimes (almost too cute to kill). Possibly blood-sucking bats and sentient mushrooms that will punch and/or poison you.
  • Treasure: A few potions, about 20 gold and slightly better armour (+ 2 DEF).
  • Puzzles: Push a rock here, step on a switch there (who installed it in this forest?!). Nothing that would stump a 10-year-old.
  • Overall Difficulty: Easy-peasy. This isn’t about challenging the player yet, it’s about teaching them how to kill enemies and getting them hooked on collecting experience points, cash and items.

The boy may only have a wooden sword and no idea what he’s doing, but give him a few slimes, some potions, maybe a pep talk from his mascot buddy, and he’s well on his way (Level 3) to becoming the legendary hero (Level 50) the world doesn’t yet know it will need.

Assembling the Archetypes

No JRPG is complete without a diverse cast of characters to accompany the hero. Some of them do have unique strengths and personalities, and the group will certainly experience some interpersonal drama at least once, as if battling giant spiders and fierce manticores wasn’t exciting enough.

Here are the kinds of characters you encounter most often:

The Childhood Friend with Healing Skills

This reliable figure has been by the hero’s side for years. She’s a very talented healer (of course it’s a girl), wielding magic only to keep the party alive while contributing almost nothing in terms of dealing damage. 

Healer

Well, initially, that is.

Because her eventual mastery of summoning elemental spirits not only adds versatility, but becomes one of the quickest ways to do away with hordes of enemies.

Being the emotional glue of the group, the hero will inevitably fall for her later on — even though …

The Mage or Thief

… is clearly the hottest female character in the party — or the game as a whole. 

Whether she’s a cynical mage casting destructive fire, ice and lightning spells or a nimble thief with a mischievous grin and double daggers, this character oozes confidence and charisma. 

Thief

She often joins the party under suspicious circumstances. While she’s clearly not interested in the hero (and he isn’t into her either), players might secretly wish the opposite was the case. At least the constant banter with the rest of the party gives her a sufficient amount of screentime.

The Warrior: 100 % Honour, 0 MP

The backbone of any JRPG party, this hulking figure has been born for dealing and soaking up physical damage. His total lack of magic might seem like a disadvantage at first, but his raw strength comes at no cost, which actually makes him even more useful than the mage. 

Warrior

The warrior is straightforward, dependable and, to be honest, a little boring. He’s the perfect foil for the more eccentric party members.

The overpowered Guest Character

Somewhere along the journey, the party is joined by an older man so strong he makes everyone else feel like useless amateurs. He breezes through enemies, obliterating even the toughest brutes with a single swing of his two-handed sword — only to vanish just as suddenly as he had appeared. 

Overpowered Character

Whether his departure is tied to a personal quest, a dramatic twist (his death, somehow? A betrayal?) or just narrative convenience, he leaves behind a gaping hole in your strategy — and possibly your heart, because, man, that dude was cool, but had such a sad backstory.

The Gameplay Loop (of 60 Hours)

Ah, the JRPG gameplay loop — an irresistible treadmill of battles, treasure and gradual mastery that keeps players glued to the screens for dozens of hours. 

Let’s break it down.

The Prophecy

A JRPG needs a prophecy, apparently. Everyone in the game world knows it, and it’s all you get for a story in the early game. It’s vague, ominous and just intriguing enough to keep you moving forward — even if it feels like the narrative equivalent of training wheels.

The Biome Checklist

JRPG fans love variety, and the world map is proof of it. Expect a desert where the sun beats down mercilessly, a snowy tundra with slippery frozen lakes and a second, way more mysterious forest inhabited by elves or fairies. 

These biomes aren’t just visually distinct, they also serve as a justification to include different enemy types, puzzles and music.

Four Crystals

The plot often revolves around four magical crystals, each tied to a specific element: fire, water, earth and wind. The elements are the bases for the main dungeon themes, and the crystals are the primary reason for the hero and his friends to keep travelling. The fate of the world depends on their restoration, naturally.

Spell Elements: The Classic Four — or Eight?

If the crystal elements aren’t also the spell elements, it’s probably fire, ice, water, lightning, earth, wind, light and dark. 

Whether you’re exploiting enemy weaknesses or just enjoying the flashy animations, elemental magic never gets old, does it?

Potion Hoarding

Potions are the lifeblood of any JRPG adventurer, almost literally, but most games make sure you never run out of them. They’re so cheap and abundant that you’ll always have 99 in your inventory (the max number) from the midgame on. 

But let’s be honest: You’ll rarely use them once you have access to a few healing spells.

Status Cures you’ll also never use

Poison, paralysis, confusion, sleep — JRPGs throw a variety of negative status effects at you. Surprisingly often, there’s a specific item to cure each one, which you’ll dutifully buy until you have the next multiple of 5. 

These will also stay in your bags forever, of course, because once you hit Level 7, that cure-all spell makes them pretty much obsolete.

Helping random People with their mundane Problems

The world may be on the brink of destruction, but that doesn’t stop NPCs from asking you to solve their minor inconveniences. 

Whether it’s finding a lost cat, delivering a love letter or collecting 10 common flowers, these side quests do add some charm … and maybe an important item or two to your inventory.

Opportunity for wasting even more of your Time

Somewhere in the world, there’s a coliseum offering punishing battles, a casino promising big rewards and an original card game no one asked for. 

While these side attractions are fun in theory, they’re rarely worth the effort. 

Still, it’s nice to know they’re there if you ever … um, run out of other games to play, I guess? In all seriousness, I don’t think we need this kind of content anymore.

The Plot thickens (slowly)

A large part of the JRPG experience consists in the mid-to-late game drama, rich with plot twists and mind-blowing revelations about the world itself. Here’s what you should totally put in your game:

The Emperor’s Fury

The evil emperor has been wreaking havoc across the world, and your mission is to defeat him. 

Savvy players know he’s not the final threat, though. He’s actually just a puppet who moves the plot forward before the real villain reveals himself.

The Airship

Walking is for amateurs. The party has already gotten a ship somehow, crossing the seas as if it’s nothing. But now, they gain access to a flying vehicle to conquer the skies! 

This opens up new areas filled with extra-fierce monsters, extra-useful treasure and the occasional side quest that sheds light on parts of the lore that aren’t all that important, but need to be explained anyway for players who demand answers to everything.

Backstabs and Farewells

Shocking betrayal? Check. Lamentable death? Check. Maybe it’s permanent, maybe it’s not, but either way, the characters spend an emotional few hours hashing it out. 

Players should expect lingering tension, heated arguments and a heartfelt speech or two about trust and unity.

Congratulations. You’re special

Now we learn — to everyone’s surprise except the player’s — that the awkward teenager with no parents and a wooden sword is, in fact, the chosen one. This is where our hero unlocks their true potential, glowing aura and all, and gets his ultimate (or penultimate) weapon.

Bosses demoted to Grunts

Remember that terrifying boss who wiped the floor with you early on? Well, they’re back — as a generic enemy in a late-game dungeon. Enjoy the sweet satisfaction of crushing them with a single hit!

Busy NPCs: The real Heroes

The world may be on the brink of annihilation, but shopkeepers and innkeepers remain unfazed. Need herbs, a new helmet or a good night’s rest? They’ve got you covered with their unwavering working morale.

An overly epic Finale

The culmination of every JRPG is an epic showdown that leaves players emotionally drained, satisfied in terms of gameplay mechanics — and wondering if they might have missed any important side quest before heading towards the point of no return. 

Here’s how it all goes down:

The Emperor’s Demise

The party storms the emperor’s dark, but somehow technologically advanced fortress — full floating platforms (instead of, you know, stairs), magical barriers (that can be removed rather easily) and background music featuring a choir singing pseudo-Latin phrases. 

The emperor, now fully aware he’s only a stepping stone, takes on his final form, a grotesque, forbidden-power-corrupted disfigurement of human and monster parts, spouting vague philosophy about the flaws of the human race (ironically). 

He falls after a grueling battle, delivering a cryptic warning that sets the stage for the true villain to emerge.

The evil God arises

Glowing eyes, rumbling earth and a voice so deep it reverberates in the player’s chest. This god mocks the party’s ‘petty mortal struggles’ and begins unraveling reality itself, turning the sky blood-red and causing gravity-defying debris to swirl around the battlefield which is, naturally, made of crystal.

Pep Talk between the Rounds

The final boss always has two phases, the first one being rather unchallenging: Spells called ‘Meteor’, ‘Supernova’, ‘Black Hole’ or ‘Judgment Omega’ deal less damage than being hit by a colour-shifted Goblin’s wooden club.

Before the final, final showdown, the party shares heartfelt moments, reminiscing about their journey. The healer vows to protect everyone, the warrior cracks a stoic grin and the quirky mascot delivers an awkward joke to break the tension. The protagonist? Silent, of course, but glowing with newfound resolve.

The party fights with heroic determination, spamming their ultimate moves while the healer barely keeps everyone alive. Players keep restoring MP, but with items that aren’t Elixirs, as if there might be yet another phase that will absolutely require all 30 of them.

The party wins the actual battle, but still loses during the cutscene afterwards. Just when everything seems hopeless, the protagonist unleashes his true power — a luminous transformation that lets them go one-on-one with the god’s final, final, final, yet very humanoid form.

You notice that the music isn’t bombastic anymore, but almost … melancholic? This is where you realise the credits are within grasp.

The Power of Friendship/Love/Unity

The hero wins, but the god is still alive. In a climactic moment, the party combines their most spectacular skills never shown before in the game. The mage’s ultimate spell pierces through the god’s shields, the warrior lands a planet-crushing critical blow and the healer summons the holiest of elemental spirits. The protagonist delivers the finishing strike — not with their legendary sword, but with the unbreakable power of friendship or love or unity or whatever it may be this time.

A cinematic explosion follows, and the evil god dissolves into light, muttering something about how they were wrong about their core beliefs and how mere mortals are, all in all, more resilient than they seem.

A bittersweet Victory

The evil god has finally been killed, but not without sacrifice. The quirky mascot also fades into sparkles after ‘fulfilling his purpose’, and the mage/thief admits she’ll miss it (grudgingly). 

The group then stands on a cliffside overlooking the ocean (as if that is the most important part of the world they saved), each one of them silently pondering what may come next in their lives after this massive project of theirs is completed.

Festival Credits

The credits roll over a cheerful festival scene: children playing, shopkeepers drinking, old people smiling and other NPCs thanking the party for, like, everything.

A teaser for the secret boss flashes after the credits: a shadowy figure in a location seen before somewhere, waiting for the true completionists in New Game Plus.

But we love it anyway!

There’s a reason JRPG clichés have stood the test of time: They’re familiar and thus comforting, sure, but they’re also endlessly entertaining to the archaic parts of our psyche. Whether it’s the thrill of battle or seeing a normal young person grow into the destined hero vanquishing a powerful evil, these tropes have a way of pulling us in and keeping us invested.

Jrpg Party Silhouettes

We may poke fun at wooden swords used against slime monsters, overly dramatic discussions about moralistic ideals of little practical value as well as the irrational item hoarding, but deep down, these elements are what make the genre so endearing. 

JRPGs embrace their own brand of silliness and exaggeration with surprising gravity, and I think that’s part of the reason it’s so hard not to be swept away by these adventures. The narratives are unapologetically big, bold and packed with heart — even when the twists are predictable, they still manage to tug at our emotions.

To conclude, JRPGs aren’t just about turn-based combat, finding treasure chests or saving the world. They’re about a certain type of the hero’s journey, caricatural characters and the moving scenes that stay with us long after the credits roll.

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What’s your opinion on JRPG clichés? Do you love them, even though you’ve seen them over and over again, and some of them don’t really make that much sense except for gameplay purposes? Or do you prefer JRPGs which try to do almost everything differently than the genre classics in order to avoid any repetition of tropes?

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