The Longest JRPG Remakes, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• Older JRPGs can have shorter runtimes in modern remakes.
• Remakes like Star Ocean and Final Fantasy enhance graphics.
• New remakes enhance original character development.

Older JRPGs can often have inflated runtimes due to the conventions of the time. This length can get cut down significantly when the title is remade for modern audiences and modern conveniences are added. The games listed below still give players a lot of bang for their buck, however.

They prove that the original story and the mechanics still have a lot of weight and value beyond the tendency of older JRPGs to make players grind. In some cases, the remake goes down a different route and is pretty much an entirely new game with an entirely different structure.

All times are taken from howlongtobeat.com

10 Star Ocean: The Second Story R

26 Hours

The HD 2D aesthetic fits a lot of JRPG remakes. It acknowledges the validity of the sprite-based art style while still updating the graphics. Star Ocean: The Second Story R still retains the feel of the 90s JRPG while looking fresh thanks to this innovative mesh of new and old.

The gameplay changes are more subtle and serve to modernize the game rather than give it an entirely different feel. Still, fans of the old game will get a lot by going through it again with the new 3D environments and the beautiful lighting.

9 Final Fantasy 3

30 Hours

As special as it was to receive a Final Fantasy 3 remake for the Nintendo 3DS, it is funny to call this game a remake since it was the first time gamers in North America got their hands on this particular adventure. In some ways, the 3D graphics almost age the game more than the original sprites.

All the same, this remake benefits from giving the main characters actual personalities and backstories. Some simple details about the characters go a long way toward creating an attachment between them and the player.

8 Dragon Quest 3 HD

30 Hours

Some might wonder why Dragon Quest 3 was remade before the first two games in the series. In Japan, the game was an absolute phenomenon and is what catapulted the series to the legendary status it holds today. It is also chronologically the first in the timeline, so there is some logic in releasing it first.

The HD 2D visual facelift is nice, but Dragon Quest 3 is still an RPG of its time. Players should not go in thinking they will have a revelation and wonder how such a game could have been made so long ago. All the same, it is a great JRPG adventure for fans of the genre.

7 Final Fantasy 4

31 Hours

Final Fantasy 4 originally came out in the West as Final Fantasy 2. By the time the remake came around, the confusion around the naming convention had been cleared up. The 3D graphics certainly help this version stand out from the crowd of other Final Fantasy 4 re-releases and remakes.

It unfortunately lacks some content found in other versions of the game. The visuals are still enough to make this a novel way to experience the story even for those intimately familiar with this game.

Final Fantasy 4: The Complete Edition
for the PSP is arguably a more definitive edition to play, and it has more features.

6 Final Fantasy 7 Remake

32 1/2 Hours

This is certainly the biggest ratio of original to remake content. Final Fantasy 7 Remake only covers the first portion of the original game up until the party’s exit from Midgar. Taking what is between a five and eight-hour portion of the game and stretching it past thirty hours makes Final Fantasy 7 Remake anywhere from 350 to 600 percent bigger than the original.

Even though it stretches out such a small length of game, it rarely feels like there is filler. The length of time spent in this part of the story lets the characters more fully develop.

5 Wild Arms Alter Code F

43 Hours

• Release: November, 2003
• Developer: Media.Vision
• Publisher: Sony
• Platforms: PS2

Final Fantasy 7 Remake is not the first JRPG remake to stretch out its story. Wild Arms Alter Code F is a remake of the first game in the series and increases the main game’s length by about fifteen hours. There are more cutscenes and optional quests to go through in the updated version of this adventure.

This is not always a plus, since Wild Arms already has a nicely wound story that never lingers too long before hitting the next beat of the adventure. For people who are already fans of the world, it is a plus to stay there longer and see it with increased visual fidelity.

4 Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

47 1/2 Hours

The second part of this remake saga did more than just tell the next part of the classic journey. It opened up the gameplay, and the environments, and further deepened the mystery at the heart of the remake trilogy.

Though the main story is about fifteen hours longer to beat than Final Fantasy 7 Remake, the side content makes Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth one of the biggest JRPGs in recent memory. It can also be one of the hardest once players get into the hard mode difficulty and start taking on the harder bouts in the Shinra Combat Simulator.

3 Tactics Ogre: Reborn

54 Hours 1/2

Tactics Ogre: Reborn, of all the games on this list, appears to be the most like a simple remaster. However, there are so many differences going on under the hood to earn a place on this list. The progression, abilities, and combat are changed so much that they offer a different experience than the original releases or even the PSP remaster.

For fans of the title, the hard-hitting story and sometimes difficult battles are still here. It is a long adventure assuming one wins every battle the first time. It is even longer when one fails and needs time to strategize.

2 Persona 3 Reload

64 Hours

It is no small thing to remake a game as big as Persona 3. They did more than just update the graphics. Persona 3 Reload takes a lot of improvements the series went through in the next two numbered games and adds them to this PS2 classic. There are also changes to some scenes and updated dialogue.

Unfortunately, This release is not the full package, since it lacks the option to play as a female character that was in the PSP version. Even if it is not definitive, it is still a fantastic way to play this classic JRPG.

1 Dragon Quest 7: Fragments Of The Forgotten Past

74 Hours

Big things come in small packages. Nothing proves this more than Dragon Quest 7: Fragments Of The Forgotten Past. This Nintendo 3DS remake takes the classic PS1 JRPG and takes 74 hours to beat, making even recent Like a Dragon games blush.

Dragon Quest 7 is a solid game all the way through, but such an adventure takes a lot of patience. At least people can take the game on the go with them on the 3DS. This remake, along with the updated graphics, also has a new translation that changes a lot of the names and terms from the English version of the PS1 release.