Arcana

Publisher: Hal America
Developer: Hal Laboratory
Release date: May 1992

This was a rare find on consoles at the time: A Japanese-style RPG with a first-person vantage point. Arcana was one of the final console games released by Hal as an independent publisher before its marriage with Nintendo, and it was a notable effort.

I speak of "Japanese-style RPG" of course in relation to western-style RPGs, which are more common to use the first-person view. Even though Arcana is first-person, it has a linear progression, a developed story, and a set cast of characters with limited customization, essentially like a Japanese RPG. There is no real overworld-- the player chooses from locations on a map. The game is otherwise a dyed-in-the-wool first-person, tile-based dungeon crawler where the player progresses from town to dungeon to a new town to a new dungeon, and so forth.

When I was a kid I was frightened of first-person games, precisely because they were usually of the complex European or American mold with high strategy, customizability and an often creepy atmosphere. For me, Arcana was the first game with this type of viewpoint that I ever felt comfortable playing, precisely because of its accessibility and the cartoony, anime-style art. Japanese RPG fans will definitely find themselves at home here-- the game even features a catchy and full-featured soundtrack, also a common trait of the Japanese style.

So if you're looking for a nice, entry-level Japanese-style RPG that uses a first-person vantage point, you can't go wrong with Arcana. Though it does nothing overly remarkable, it is highly polished and a very enjoyable playthrough.