GatorDeb

I have yet to finish an RPG without cheat codes. What are some of the easiest? Any system. Old school like SNES, GBA welcomed.

Noonan

Honestly, the Pokemon games are probably your best bet. Pure classic turn-based RPG and it's not nearly as grindy as a more serious one.

That or Super Mario RPG from SNES would be my suggestions.

fujishig

If we're talking traditional turn based JRPGs, the classics are all easily beatable just by grinding over and over (more modern ones may be somewhat different, and certainly the systems have become super complex over the years). If you want something without the grind:

Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure for PS1. not sure how easy it is to find
Final Fantasy Mystic Quest for SNES

The remastered early Dragon Quests eliminated a lot of the grinding. Like DQ1 and DQ2 are totally different games without the grind. In fact, I would recommend any earlier Dragon Quest or Final Fantasy game (if there are job choices, just read a wiki to see which ones are easiest to use).

DVD Josh

I never found FF1 for NES all that difficult. I still play it every few years with different clan configurations.

Koby

As others have said, if you have trouble in a turn-based RPG, all you need to do is a little grinding to up your level a little.

Or if there is an upgrade system like Perks or the Sphere Grid, etc... you might need to slightly adjust things. Get a little better equipment, etc..

With just a little bit of grinding, pretty much they become a cake walk.

Some of my favorites include Shadow Hearts (all of them), Grandia II, Legend of Dragoon, Final Fantasy (4, 9, & 10), XenoSaga (all of em), BattleChasers: Nightwar, Dragon Quest (8 & 11), Suikoden (I've only played 4 thus far, but people generally say it's the weakest of them so the rest are probably even better).

Some newer games in the vein of more traditional classic turn-based jrpgs are things like Octopath Traveler, I am Setsuna, and Lost Sphear if you wanna check them out.

If you don't mind an anime type story and aesthetic, I recently (in the last year) got into the Trails of Cold Steel series and it's been a fun turn-based jrpg with a really nice story. It's also extremely easy, just really long. 1 & 2 is out on PC and are being re-released on PS4 this year. While 3 is being released on PS4 later this year and CS4 hasn't been announced for localization yet.

Decker

Easiest recent ones would be Costume Quest 1 & 2. They're cute but not at all challenging in the least. They were the first ones I had my boy play.

fujishig

Great suggestion. Amazon prime also has a cartoon series of it if your kids are still that age.

Gideon68

The two that immediately came to mind have been mentioned - Final Fantasy Mystic Quest and Super Mario RPG.
Is there anything specific about RPGs that's giving you issues? If it's beating higher level enemies, you would then just need to level up just as others have stated.

fujishig

One thing I'll say about even something that's modern but old-school like Octopath Traveler is that the leveling system is relatively complex. Having a lot of choices is usually a benefit for an rpg, but there is something to be said about straightforward leveling and job paths for games if you want something simple. Like Dragon Quest keeps a lot of the old school trappings. Final Fantasy IX was actually one of the few that I finished within a few months mainly because it was more straightforward and I wasn't paralyzed by trying to maximize all the jobs and summons and whatnot.

GatorDeb

BTW of the ones mentioned I've played various Mario RPGs and I found them too difficult Ultima? Difficult. FF Tactics? Difficult. Golden Sun? Finished with unlimited health cheat.

fujishig

What do you find difficult about them? You can literally just pick an area and grind out levels so that you're way overpowered in most of the games mentioned.

Noonan

Final Fantasy Tactics is definitely not a RPG for beginners. That one has some brutal fights in it.

fujishig

The original one, at least, you can grind for levels, and there's even a trick to maximize stats to make it easier (though it's time consuming). But yeah, the mechanics are not simple.

Noonan

Yeah. Fantastic game; one of the best ever but not for a first timer, IMO. Not having random battles made it a bit less intuitive to grind and you had to manage your party more-so than a standard RPG game.

Damn, now I need start up a new save and re-play it.

Obi-Wanma

Final Fantasy Mystic Quest for SNES was a simplified RPG designed specifically to introduce the genre to American children. It's an RPG on rails, basically.

lopper

Decker

You need Xenoblade Chronicles 2 then. Very cool game. Was dirt-cheap at Target recently.

Noonan

Agree. XC2 is a must-play for RPG fans. Lost Sphere and/or I Am Setsuna are worth playing as well.

Koby

Isn't XenoBlade more action-RPG? I haven't played it (no Wii U and no Switch) so maybe I'm wrong, but I was thinking it was more like Monster Hunter, Valhalla Knights, etc.. rather than turn-based.

fujishig

It's more of an action rpg/mmorpg-lite, definitely not traditional turn based. If you've already played all of the final fantasies (and have no desire to replay IX, X, XII, or Maxima) I can't think of a good "modern" one. For example, I enjoy Cosmic Star Heroine but it's obviously retro.

Oh, I forgot Steven Universe Save the Light is pretty good, but it helps if you're a fan of the series. Undertale if you haven't played it before. Labyrinth of Refrain for a dungeon crawler, Etrian Odyssey-like game.

There's a wealth of tactical rpgs if you like those though. Into the Breach, both Valkyria Chronicles, Wargroove (for that Advance Wars itch), Banner Saga, the oft-overlooked Ambition of the Slimes (the sequel just came out), and the surprisingly decent X-com clone Mario + Rabbids, with Fire Emblem on the way. And for hybrid rpgs, if you haven't playd Golf Story that's almost a must.

lopper

It's turn based? I thought it was real time combat.

dom56

I enjoyed the heck on Lost Odyssey on the Xbox 360 and was disappointed that there wouldn't be a sequel since Mistwalker went kaput.

Decker

It's kind of a hybrid. It isn't exactly turn based, but there are some turn-like elements as well. I mean it certainly isn't an action RPG in the vein of Fallout or The Witcher.

lopper

PhantomStranger

This was the first RPG that popped into my head as I read the question. It was deliberately made as a softer, more welcoming RPG experience aimed at younger children.