A few story elements were also removed, but I can't recall which ones; then again, if I can't remember, shows how memorable they were. :P

But even so, yeah, VI is simply too big to be 3Dfied and slapped onto a DS cart; they'll definitely need to move to something else.

I'm thinking even a PSP port wouldn't be easy and fun to make. The idea thing is to move it to a current-gen console…but, like that'll happen. :P

So I don't see what the problem would be. FFV is pretty big as well, with 3 distinct worlds, but I still think they can fit it into a DS cart if they wanted, there are bigger sizes, like 2G. So I don't see a problem. Maybe you just want FFVI remake on a different system and are projecting this desire into arguments about FFVI DS not being possible, when it is (theoretically of course, no confirmation from Square yet).

A few story elements were also removed, but I can't recall which ones; then again, if I can't remember, shows how memorable they were. :P

But even so, yeah, VI is simply too big to be 3Dfied and slapped onto a DS cart; they'll definitely need to move to something else.

I'm thinking even a PSP port wouldn't be easy and fun to make. The idea thing is to move it to a current-gen console…but, like that'll happen. :P

So I don't see what the problem would be. FFV is pretty big as well, with 3 distinct worlds, but I still think they can fit it into a DS cart if they wanted, there are bigger sizes, like 2G. So I don't see a problem. Maybe you just want FFVI remake on a different system and are projecting this desire into arguments about FFVI DS not being possible, when it is (theoretically of course, no confirmation from Square yet).

To me, *Partners in Time* had a better plot than that. That plot was dumb but at least it was entertaining to read!

I agree, developers really need to sit down and think of how to approach narrative in portable games. They've all been so busy trying to compete with their Western brethren in trying to push hardware, it seems a lot of them have forgotten why we love games from Japan in the first place.

As a lot of people in the comments have already pointed out, yes, the DS has taken us back to the days when gameplay was king and everything — story included — served as fluff rather than a driving force for the player. Etrian Odyssey and Dark Spire are great examples of this. While I'm personally not a fan of super hard games like those, I can see why people appreciate them and I understand the importance of preserving a genre.

But I'll have to disagree on the topic of adventure. For me, narrative is the primary driving force in RPGs. I need to know that I'm working toward something and maxing out my stats or equips doesn't cut it (unless we're talking Diablo 2). I need good character development or interaction, even if it's without the greatest plot in the world, in order to remain interested in RPGs. I like knowing what I'm fighting for, who my friends are, what their motives are. I WANT to role-play and to lose myself in the world, even if only for a few short hours. Both Persona 3 and 4 really, really impressed me in that regard.

Now, I'm all for sense of adventure and going off in pursuit of the unknown. Hell, I loved chasing after Ruby and Emerald Weapons in FFVII and I had an absolute blast trying to track down the legendaries in Pokémon Crystal. But again, I want some context when I do these things. I need them to be given a place within the world I'm part of and their relevance at least touched upon in some way.

I totally get where you're coming from when you say you're burnt out on plot-heavy RPGs. Aoshi said above that we're all getting jaded as we grow older and play more games but I think it's also that developers have failed to realize that they need to stop relying on what made for effective storytelling a decade ago if they want to keep our interest. Atlus are one developer that I'd say fully understand this understand this concept. I think — for all the haters he might have — Tetsuya Nomura understands this as well, and I'm really looking forward to Versus XIII for this reason.

Something I'm very interested in seeing developers do is treat plot advancements like chapters in portable games. Or like episodes of an anime, if you'd prefer. Give me enough incentive to play for the next, say, one or two hours, instead of dangling the carrot at the end of a 40-hour grindfest. Give each chapter a beginning and an end but make sure it ties into the overall narrative in some way. It doesn't matter if shorter chapters aren't even about the overarching plot. Make them about the characters. Use something similar to social links if you need to.

Devil Survivor is absolutely great at this. I find myself with reduced patience for JRPGs these days but I love watching the plot twists in Devil Survivor after every single major battle. They give you enough incentive and they do it often. That's what I'd like to see more of.

By the way, I'm being absolutely serious here, not a joke.

Come to think about it, those games that may come along could be overall rewarding if they meld a deep story with the strong approach to the game design that DS RPGs typically center on. After all, one period serves as influence onto the next…

I feel that a number of RPGs on the DS brought back focus to the gameplay spirit of the genre: emphasizing less on a bulky narrative and a flair for tech comeuppance, to more of an approach intent on stealing back the dormant adventurous personality in all of us that was rendered comatose by a number of things which may surround us.

There's adventure in forgetting about the current situation at hand and heading off to that alluring location that's relatively visible yet a somewhat out of the way, something one wouldn't dare to do in reality (abandoning an important task). There's adventure in coming to a three-way fork in a cavern, taking the least obvious path only to find nothing but scenery (yet still worth it), then taking the lesser uncommon path to be rewarded with treasure. There's adventure in purposefully engaging into combat, with the game's signature murder anthem firing up, as a cluster of enemies reveal themselves: some familiar and some unseen (like discovering a new species).

That adventurous spirit further lies in acts such as tweaking one's party, pairing up that cursed weapon with that legendary mail in hopes that it pays off. Then there's still pushing to one's limits in a battlefield where the enemy greatly outnumbers your allies, when chess-like and gambling intuition come to an advantage. Finally it all comes down to looking at the rules the genre presents to us, and imagining how things can be fully taken advantage of and perhaps even… broken. It's not just about the romanticism in being adventurous, it's also about how much focus is being put back into encouraging the player to adopt a daring sort of personality which comes along with adventurism.

(Don't worry, I'll stop using “adventure” and all its variances from hereon.)

Truth be told, I've been hella burned out on plot heavy RPGs. Maybe I've just experienced every story archetype there is (the “been there done that” attitude got to me), therefore a more minimalist approach is usually what I find to be enough needed. If I told 15 year old me that I now look forward to getting those stats up as opposed to finding out what happens next, he'd think I'd lost it.

Well, perhaps it's not all me, but somewhat to be blamed on “they.” It seems to me like “they” have not been releasing RPGs, but rather “story games” and “character games” on consoles for quite some time now…

SE is SE…but I doubt they'd pull something like that. There would be mass riots. People; dozens would *die*.

Also…fix your internet already. =_= Some freaky dude buggered me a few days ago. Honestly thought it could've been you. ;_;

But you're right. Soma Bringer, TWEWY, FFCC. They're all interesting plot or character-wise in their own way.

To be honest, the only non-pokemon GBA game I've played is Mother 3. I liked the story in that one as well.