1992 - Dragon Quest V
This feels like a bit of a cheat in that I have only played this game on my phone--which is a port of the DS version--so I do not know the SNES version (see note at bottom of post). That said, knowing that this shit was on the SNES makes it so incredibly impressive. When we were kids, I remember playing the original—Dragon Warrior—on the NES. I don’t think I could get far because I was a child and the concept of grinding it out and making my characters stronger was not something I understood or had the patience for. All this to say, I have some history with the series, but not as stories as my recently degraded love for Final Fantasy.
But if I had played Dragon Quest V as a kid, I think it would’ve blown my hair back. Consider this: it had a dedicated day and night cycle in nineteen-fucking-ninety-two. If you do not remember, this was an absolute revelation, it was a whole moment in Pokemon Gold and Silver. And Dragon Quest V fucking did it already i’m not trying to downplay Gold and Silver doing it on a handheld, that’s also fucking wild. And it is also an actually incredible RPG.
Consider this: you literally start the game as a six-year old going on goofy little life-threatening adventures. You make friends with a little girl and through her sort of pressuring you, also become friends with a sabertooth kitten. Then, you go on an adventure with your dad to save a prince. AND THEN THERE’S A TIME SKIP. I don’t want to reveal much more than this, but that whole thing blew my mind as an adult. It was so cool! And it really hit me right in my big softie heart. Worth noting also that that sabertooth kitten? It is the beginning of your character’s life as a monster tamer. So, if you played Dragon Quest: Monsters (you’ll notice that’s also on my list), this particular mechanic helped to inspire that whole ass game.
I’ve sadly yet to finish it because of greater time commitments and undiagnosed ADHD but I’m excited to get back to it and maybe even finish it. I can tell that it’s probably going to be in my top ten of RPGs, if not games in general, by the time I’m done. It really is incredible.
Addendum - our boy barquq told me that many don't like the DS version's localization and I'll say, the first part is rough because your dad has a manservant who they decided to make into basically a bad Spanish-speaking stereotype. Like, it really turned me off at the beginning of the game, so watch out for that if you go the phone route.