There are a bunch of RPGs out there, and a good deal of them are actually pretty decent. Let’s face it when you follow the winning formula pioneered by Final Fantasy it’s pretty hard to screw things up. Tales, Lost Odyssey, Fable; all of these games have definitely found that comfort zone where they know exactly what they are doing, how they are going to do it, and why it’s going to be awesome. But what about the RPGs that aren’t so traditional? Believe it or not, there are RPGs out there (American and Japanese) that have strayed from the path set by Final Fantasy to forge their own unique gameplay/story. As such I bring you RPGhead.com’s top five most unusual RPGs that were awesome:

Number five: Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. Developed by BioWare and brought to the Xbox in 2003, this game was one of the most unique experiences ever brought to the RPG genre. Taking place 4,000 before before the movies not only was this one of the first RPG outings for the Star Wars franchise but it also gave a whole new perspective on the universe. The game brought traditional leveling and skills to an otherwise untraditional method of storytelling where the player could talk for himself and decide whether he wanted to be “good” or “evil”. Suffice it to say, the game was a bit unusual, and never once did I think that a Star Wars game could make such a great RPG. Now, let’s just hope those rumours of a KotOR 3 are true.

Number four: Disgaea. Departing ways with the usual “good guy” RPG vibe, Disgaea brought the player to a world that was demon infested and absolutely hysterical. The game follows the Demon Prince Laharl as he attempts to regain the throne of his late father. Arrogance, egos, brash, stubborn; these are only a few of the words to describe our “good natured” hero and it is mainly because of him that Disgaea made our list at all. However, the sheer amount of gameplay contained within also helps. Following the traditional SRPG type of gameplay there is almost an endless amount of stuff to do in this game. Take over earth, destroy gods, level your characters to insane heights. All of this has helped secure a number four spot on our list.

Number three: Gladius. Gladiators? RPG? What crazy dimension are you living in? Yes, it’s true, despite being a theme that almost seems destined to be an action title this actually came out to be one top notch SRPG. Following the heroes Ursula and Valens you are tasked with the job of employing gladiators to fight against other gladiators to raise the rank of your “house”. The game had a nice combination of classes and customizability, but really this game made our number three spot for simply being an RPG with Gladiators, and a damn good one at that.

Number two: .hack//Infection. Playing an RPG is one thing, but playing an RPG where you play a character playing an MMORPG is something completely of it’s own. The .hack series is exactly that. The entire game was focused around a young player named “Kite” who explores an MMO known only as “The World”. After a virus, or something, happens players begin slipping into comas and are unable to leave the game world. Most interesting, however, is that the game actually plays a lot like an MMORPG. You’ll come across players like you would in World of Warcraft, and likewise you’ll notice people leveling as time goes on. An interesting story, mixed with surreal gameplay, solidifies this game at our number two spot.

Number one: Super Mario RPG. There is something to be said for a developer who tries to take a beloved video game mascot and pioneer of the platforming genre and is able to successfully turn it into a robust RPG world full of story and intrigue. Square-Enix did exactly that with Super Mario RPG. While the story was pretty much on par with a Mario game, with an RPG twist, the gameplay and the world really shined. The battle sequences, while turnbased, offered a unique style that included Mario’s famous jumping techniques. Likewise the game really showed off what an amazing world the Mushroom Kingdom really was. Towns littered the landscape and each showed off a unique perspective on the populace of the world. Truly, Nintendo and Square-Enix made one of the very best and most unusual RPGs in Super Mario RPG. Now if only we could get Nintendo to release in on the Virtual Console.

I hope you enjoyed our list. There were a few that we really wanted to put in but decided to leave out for reasons that are our own. Kingdom Hearts fans I am looking at you. Also, we are looking forward to seeing what BioWare can do with the Sonic RPG. I hope I am not getting my hopes up in comparing it to Mario RPG, but seriously if they can do to Sonic what Square did to Mario I’ll be in love. Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave any comments below.

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