So Golden Sun is on Virtual Console. I've never played it and know very little about it. I don't really like Traditional JRPGs all too much other than the classic gems that rise above the rest of the genre eg Earthbound, Mother 3, Chrono Trigger, etc. I also like me a Pokemon game though that's very much a "turn your brain off" sort of RPG. Also I love love love Paper Mario and Paper Mario TTYD. I like Mario & Luigi though less and less each time out even though it was a ton of fun to play as Bowser in the 3rd one. Had they done a Bowser only game for #4 that would've been way more fun. Oh! And obviously I love Persona and have watched through Persona 3 and Persona 4. I have not finished Persona 3 Portable though so I consequently haven't started Persona 4 Golden. It's been in my backlog for ages.

So to sum up I only like the best JRPGs and everything else out there I have no interest in ever playing. Does Golden Sun stand up to those games? I have no idea! Tell me what's cool about it and I'll listen and then maybe I'll pass on it and play Hearthstone on my iPad instead. Try to sell me. Please.

From what I played? No, not really. The most interesting parts of the game were the dungeon puzzles and the Djinn in combat. The latter barely left a mark, and the former was done better in Lufia 2 IMO. I think you can safely skip this one.

Also, you should be playing FTL instead of Hearthstone on your iPad.

golden sun is lame from what i remember and even way back when it was new i thought it looked like butt

edit: i fully expect a lot of people to disagree with me

Probably one of my favorite if not my favorite RPG of all time. I think the characters are pretty engaging and the story and dialogue are well written, though these points get fleshed out more with the sequel. Golden Sun can definitely stand on it's own though. The Djinn system allows for some pretty neat customization options that you can engage with to change playstyles, or ignore completely if you want. It's definitely a traditional RPG in the sense of random encounters, turn based battles, and so on, but battles are pretty fast paced and the encounter rate isn't ridiculous like some older games.

I don't know, if you're willing to engage with the game, it's an excellent title to dig in to. I don't know if it's one of the "best" RPGs? If you prefer more action-y RPGs, maybe it's not for you. You don't seem like you're willing to give it much of a shot anyway.

@theblue: What kind of time investment is required? Also sell me on the characters and world. Why are they engaging?

This isn't gonna appeal to you too much.

It is very Lufia 2-esque, if that tells you anything. The dungeons have some heavy puzzle elements to them, and the djinn system allows for a lot of (albeit superfluous) character customization. However, it's a turn-based JRPG at its core with all the themes and trappings that come along with.

@themasterds: The game isn't terribly long, maybe 30 hours at most. There really isn't much grinding required if you explore most areas. The thing about the characters and story is that Golden Sun is part 1 of a 2 part series. It sets up the story and character reveals that The Lost Age concludes. While the characters don't have terribly in depth, emotional back stories, I think that they're well written and likable, much like Chrono Trigger's cast.

The story seems on the surface like some ragtag group of kids goes to save the world, but it's a little more complex than that. You end up chasing down two thieves who stole objects from your village that, if used, may bring about the destruction of the world, but there ends up being a much greater threat. It sounds kinda like your generic RPG tale, but there are some interesting twists in the story that kind of turn the game on its head.

Like I said though, the story spans two games. So just playing the first one leaves a lot to be desired that the sequel gives. I would honestly highly recommend it if you're into RPGs, but if you just kind of dabble every now and then, it may not be what you're looking for.

Don't use the last save point. Please.

Great animation.

The music and puzzle dungeons were the best parts of those games. Also mind reading everyone.

@themasterds: In regards to time commitment, I beat the game recently (having never beat it before, and with very little faq-consulting) at around the mid-20 hour mark, though looking back when I got to the last dungeon, I felt stupid for missing some stuff, so my run was probably on the short side. Having finished it for the first time recently, I second pretty much everything TheBlue is saying. Everything is serviceable at the worst, so long as you keep in mind this game is only the first part.

Do you like sick summons? I haven´t played golden sun since I was 11 in 2002 but as a kid invoking world ending destruction just to get rid of a vermin was the best thing about the game for me. (they probably look like shit now but i don't want to ruin my memories by looking at a video of them). The game also finds neat ways to use the psyenergy outside of the battles in the form of puzzles.

I think it all depends on how you feel about the classic urn based jrpg formula because if you don't like it it's not gonna change your mind.

PS. Ivan sucks

The powers that you gain can have application outside of combat, which isn't something most RPGs can claim. The first game has a typical JRPG go leave your small town to save the world but if you play the second game they mess with that formula some.

Some of the bad guys are former friends from your town, I think they do a good job of making you invested in the quest. Some of the characters are generic (fire based guy is brash and loud!) and the main character doesn't speak, but can make various head motions at certain points. The history and setting of the world kind of makes up for some poor characters.

The Djinn are sort of like Pokemon, you can look around to try and find all the Djinn for everyone. Technically you can change characters Djinn around which would give them different powers, but I never really saw a good reason to give a character half of one type and half of another.

The dungeons (especially the lighthouses) have some good puzzle elements, they aren't completely easy to solve but they also aren't brutally tough, but it gives you something to do when advancing through the story beyond reaching the next floor in a dungeon.

The combat isn't too complicated, you only have 4 party members and each has pretty rigid role, unless you change around the Djinn. You pick your actions for your whole team and watch them play out, I think a speed stat maybe determines who goes when. My biggest complaint is if you target 1 enemy with 3 attacks and the first attack kills the enemy, the other two characters will just defend instead of attacking someone else.

Overall I think the game is pretty great, but playing the sequel is pretty much a must because they end the game on a cliffhanger. It clearly has caught your eye, despite your reservations of most JRPGs, so I say give it a try, you may be pleasantly surprised.

A shame that the 3rd game in the series wasn't very good...

from what I've played of the Golden Sun series, They are solid if unremarkable JRPGs.

They seem best suited young gamers getting into the genre. There's nothing wrong with that, but if what you like best about genre is witty story telling of a Persona or Mario&Luigi than these games probably won't do it for you.

I really liked these games when they came out, but I'm not sure how well they hold up. There's some cool things in there, but I think part of the reason I originally liked it was because it was one of the first instances of a console style JRPG I ever played on a handheld, which isn't that novel anymore. I tried to replay them a few times, but the biggest negative is that the dialogue draaaaaags oooooon fooorreeevver. It feels like it has one of the longest introductions in any game ever, simply for the fact that they take forever just to get a simple conversation.

I still thinks there's probably more good than bad in there, but it's hard to recommend wholeheartedly.

@slag: Yo Mario & Luigi isn't the Mario RPG to bring up when it comes to storytelling. Always bring up Paper Mario. In Paper Mario 2 you become a professional wrestler in a chapter. Please remember that and always use that Mario RPG as an example if you're going to make one.

Also I dunno, I like personality and world building. Someone should paint a word picture of the world, I imagine that would be more convincing than just praising. Like is it set in a interesting time? Are Djinn like Furies from Codex Alera where they allow basically everyone to manipulate one element of nature or another? Does it have any Roman type vibes like Codex Alera? Where does it pull inspiration from?

And I do like the sound of the puzzles. Is it vaguely Zelda Dungeon like? That's sort of the impression I'm getting. Or is it more like a slightly more meaningful version of what Pokemon has with HMs?

I don't know if I'll realistically play this because way I figure if I allow myself to go back and play old games there's a million I should play and I'll never find time for new ones but I'd still like to know more because, short of quick look, I'd never know anything about Golden Sun otherwise. I imagine there's others reading this thread who are the same. Please continue trying to sell me. Maybe you will, maybe you'll sell someone else as well. It's like 8 dollars on your Wii U which of course everyone should already have.

Game is great. Combat can get very tactical unless you over level yourself on purpose to steam roll everything. It was visually very striking for it's time (sparks are flying everywhere) and I enjoyed the dialogue.

It's kind of boring but it is okay. I'm not sure there's any reason to play it if you're not 12 years old and own a GBA 13 years ago. It was the closest to a real JRPG there was to play on the go back then. It's not terrible, but I wouldn't say it's must-play. That being said, when I played these games as a kid, I ended up beating both Golden Sun and Lost Age. I have no idea how I had the patience to do that, I've almost never beaten any other JRPG's.

yo guys holy SHIT this game is 13 fucking years old

13 YEARS OLD

THIS GAME IS OLDER THAN I WAS WHEN I PLAYED IT

Well, this is the ad they tried to sell it to you with.

It even has some gameplay in it.

It's a traditional JRPG, about 20-30 hours. The art direction is good; the music is great; and while the story/characters aren't groundbreaking or terribly imaginative, they get the job done and keep you engaged and invested. It helps that the writing is of particular quality and thankfully doesn't have the trappings of constant flashbacks or redundant/repetitive dialogue. The combat is standard JRPG flare, with a couple twists: you collect Djinn, spirits of the elements, that augment your characters' classes, giving them new spells and higher stats. Each Djinn has an ability that can be used in battle at the cost of putting that Djinn on cooldown. Since only active Djinn count towards having upgraded class and stats, the player has to manage being statistically weaker and using summons with access to Djinn abilities and higher stats/spells. Also, some of the spells you learn can be used in the puzzles while exploring the world.

As mentioned before, Golden Sun is only the first part of the series, and is mostly the setup for the main story that happens in The Lost Age. In just about every way, The Lost Age outshines this game, but hey--it's still a solid JRPG.