"In 2023, Final Fantasy Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida indicated his distaste for the term JRPG, saying that Square Enix doesn't go into its games trying to make a JRPG. "We go into them thinking we're going to create RPGs," he explained. Before this, Nintendo producer Hitoshi Yamagami, who worked with MonolithSoft on Xenoblade Chronicles X, echoed similar sentiments, saying, "I feel like we just make RPGs, I don't need anyone to add the 'J', personally.""
"There is no clearer example of this than Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, a game that, by its developers' own admission, is inspired by role-playing games developed in Japan, but was created by a small team of developers in France. It is a triumphant testament to the universality and potential of what those games offered then and still do now. The framework of Expedition 33 can very easily be traced back to specific classics and"
Japanese developers and industry veterans increasingly reject the 'JRPG' label as pigeonholing their work, insisting they create RPGs rather than region-specific products. Design traits once considered uniquely Japanese now appear across global studios, and major franchises have evolved toward mature narratives and more action-oriented combat to appeal to broader audiences. New generations of creators worldwide reinterpret and blend those influences, breaking geographical attachments. Independent examples like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, developed in France yet clearly inspired by Japanese RPGs, demonstrate the enduring universality and influence of those design principles.
Read at GameSpot
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