There, I said it. I only started playing one of the finest examples of our medium last week. I don’t know why it’s taken me so long or why I chose to play it now but I’ve finally gotten around to it and I love it. Here is my apology for one of gaming’s cardinal sins (along with not liking Final Fantasy VII, but that’s a story for another day).

I’m normally taken aback by conventional JRPGs and this seemed no different. I didn’t want to lose a sizeable chunk of my life to completing the main story. This, coupled with side quest after side quest after freakin’ side quest has put me off of games ranging from Final Fantasy X to Xenoblade Chronicles. I was told this was different; this was the game and I had to play to ensure I could reach gaming nirvana, or whatever happens to gamers when they die.

I’m often averse to playing games with hype surrounding it: Okami failed to stir my senses and Final Fantasy VII, at the time of writing, hasn’t sent me in to a cacophony of craziness ten hours in and I doubt it will for the remaining 500 (a conservative estimate). This probably stems from my dislike of Eastern sensibilities. I adore the Metal Gear Solid series yet I feel it could have been handled better by a Western developer who could restrain Hideo Kojima’s nonsensical ramblings. I may be bias towards the West but I feel lost in most Eastern games. I love WRPGs because it’ll hold my hand when I need it, unlike their Japanese equivalent. Chrono Trigger changed all this.