Suikoden II

Great story and fun combat system let down somewhat by iffy localisation and tedious footslogging.

horrible localization makes this long-ass dialogue-heavy game completely unplayable. can't really comment on the quality of the original japanese.

One of my dreams in gaming is that Konami stops being dumb, and gives us a Suikoden collection in conjunction with a new main Suikoden game that doesn't suck. Suikoden II is one of the deepest, richest, and most engaging games I have ever played. It rocks its J-RPG elements in a classic story while seamlessly integrating an always-fun strategy component. It's a complete experience from moment one, and while more games in the franchise came after, none quite capture the magic or quality of S2.

Improves on its (totally decent!) predecessor in every way. Best non-Final Fantasy JRPG experience from the 90s.