Published Aug 24, 2026, 6:00 PM EDT
Bruno Yonezawa is a Gaming Senior Writer for Screen Rant. He's been practicing professional journalism for over 10 years, and is also a communications specialist. He's played games all his life and turned that passionate hobby into a passionate career, in an industry where he's worked as a writer, editor, analyst, and more.
There’s no shortage of games and franchises under the umbrella of Square Enix, including some of the most iconic RPG franchises of all time, and among them are several 10/10 masterpieces that made history both upon and after release. As a result of a merger between Square and Enix, the Japanese developer and publisher is well-known for the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest franchises, which helped it become a benchmark company for RPGs. There are several perfect RPGs created by Square Enix, like Xenogears and Kingdom Hearts.
Of course, apart from the iconic titles and franchises that everyone knows, there are also a few great yet underrated RPGs by Square Enix, such as Fantasian: Neo Dimension, The World Ends With You, and I Am Setsuna. Granted, not every game put out there by the company is an RPG, but it is best known for titles in that genre. With so many games under its joint roster, spanning over decades, some of its releases turned out to be eternal masterpieces, a few of which are unskippable for fans of the company’s titles.
Final Fantasy IX
The best Final Fantasy game of all time, according to Metacritic, is Final Fantasy 9, and it is one of the most precious gems in Square Enix’s roster. Originally developed and published by Square for the PlayStation 1 in 2000, the title was a huge change for the franchise, even if it isn’t as popular as FF7 or FFX, for example. The game’s intention was to return to the fantasy-driven narrative that gives the franchise its name.
The two previous iterations, FF7 and FF8, were a lot more infused with sci-fi elements, which did help the series fully break into Western markets. Final Fantasy 9, however, was a lot quirkier and more magical, though still retaining the heavy themes of existentialism, life, death, and companionship that are a staple in most of the titles in the series. FF9 has an unforgettable cast of characters, both heroes and villains, as well as what is arguably the best story in a single-player Final Fantasy game.
On top of all that, FF9 also has a remarkable gameplay loop, and while it does feature some of the problems that the series had seen for decades before it, such as intense grinding, it’s an absolute delight to play. It’s been years since we’ve started hearing rumors about a Final Fantasy 9 remake, though Square Enix has not announced anything yet. Luckily, we can still play this 10/10 masterpiece nowadays on modern platforms, and it hasn’t been lost to time.
NieR: Automata
Released in 2017, NieR: Automata was a total revolution. The action RPG developed by PlatinumGames and published by Square Enix was the very first sequel to Nier, released in 2010, which is itself a spin-off of the Drakengard franchise. The first thing that stands out in NieR: Automata is how creative and different its gameplay feels. You’ll first feel like you’re playing any other third-person action RPG with hack-and-slash gameplay, but there are several sequences that feature different types of mechanics.
At times, you’ll be set into a bullet-hell fight, flight sequences, hacking games, and more. There are also some surprising changes in perspective that let you see the world from, quite literally, a different point of view, which helps with the world-building. It’s a game that you’ll need to beat multiple times to fully understand, and on each playthrough, you’ll unlock more to do and more to see, as the story gradually unfolds in NieR: Automata.
That’s one of the big things about the game. This RPG has an incredible story arc that starts off with a simple premise, and as you play through and meet new characters and go through new levels, you uncover more about the world, its inhabitants, and the truth of it all. Plus, NieR: Automata has one of the best songs an RPG has ever seen, Weight of the World, by Keiichi Okabe, which has the power to bring anyone to tears.
Chrono Trigger
Of course, Chrono Trigger is the absolute 10/10 masterpiece by Square Enix. The 1994 turn-based RPG created by Square was led by what was called a dream team. Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of Final Fantasy, Yuji Horii, creator of Dragon Quest, and Akira Toriyama, creator of Dragon Ball, united to make an RPG that was any RPG of its time – and is still much better than several modern titles in the genre.
The big thing about Chrono Trigger is that, mechanically, it seemed to fix all the problems with RPGs in the 1990s – Square cut down the average playthrough time of this RPG to around 20 hours, though you could play for more time if you went for the other endings. It removed random encounters and the grinding, both of which were staples in the genre. Instead, it just focused on telling a remarkable story with unforgettable characters and a marvelous combat system that mixed and matched character abilities.
Chrono Trigger is one of those games that aged like fine wine, and it genuinely feels absolutely amazing even 31 years later. It’s easily one of the best games ever made, and it’s timeless. Square Enix has certainly created fantastic games, considering both Square and Enix’s individual efforts before their merger, but nothing beats Chrono Trigger.
Date Founded April 1, 2003
English (US) ·