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Anything along the lines of Dragon Quest would be greatly appreciated, Nintendo recently re-mastered Dragon Quest 1 and 2 as the formula is so impressive it still holds up

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I never played them, though I played Squaresoft games of that era. What is the formula?

If you ever want to play them, jump straight to Dragon Quest 4 on NES. It's the evolutionary perfection of the JRPG formula of its time. Basically what the article describes (turn-based combat, overworld, menus, extensive story, free exploration, no handholding, secrets). The storytelling, even if linear, is the most attractive part of them.

If you prefer 16-bit, SNEs has Crono Trigger, still a cult classic (innovator for multiple endings), or the whole Final Fantasy series. Sega Genesis has Phantasy Star IV, also an evolutionary improvement of the series.

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