My FFXI thread has inspired this question.
JRPGs are my favorite genre of games. I got the PS1 and PS2 because of their then-superiority in games of that genre. I had a DS for similar reasons.
Which non-portable console is currently the best for this genre? Feel free to count downloadable games of yore, depending on how easy it is to get through said console.
That’s a tough one.
Used to be the xbox 360 hands down, but ps3 has gotten some good ones of late, like Valkyria Chronicles. I might still have to give it to x360, though, with Mistwalker (Hironobu Sakaguchi and many other of the creators of the good final fantasy games) Tales, Last Remnant and various other Square games, and some good XBL games. Again though, it’s a tough call. There’Re probably some PS3 games that I don’t know about, and ps3 just got 3D Dot Heroes which is a game very similar to the old Zelda games (not JRPGs but still awesome)
I know you’re asking for consoles but why not pc? It’s the best for rpgs in my opinion.
JRPGs, Cold. And the answer is the PS2, still. After that, the PS3. Only thing it’s good for.
All of the non-portable consoles are way behind the portable ones this generation. That said, I’d say the PS3 at this point, now that most/all of the games that gave the 360 its early lead have been ported, and the PS3 still has a few exclusives (most notably Valkyria, of course). Plus there are a few excellent PS1 JRPGs available to download if you missed any of them the first time past.
PS2. 
Otherwise, it’s a wash, and depends heavily on whether you read Japanese - because, let’s face it, Tales of Vesperia PS3 doesn’t do you any good if you don’t. Currently, I would give the edge, barely, to the 360, for Lost Odyssey (still exclusive) and ToV (Still exclusive in English). PS3 has White Knight Chronicles, which is apparently not much of a game, and Valkyria Chronicles, which, while it may be a tremendously awesome game, doesn’t REALLY count in my book when you are lining up the JRPG titles. OTOH, the PS3 has the version of Star Ocean 4 without the hideous english voice acting. The value of that varies depending on your interest in Star Ocean 4. Both consoles have FF13, which is an indifferent game, and the technical differences between the two versions are basically negligible, whatever the raving PS3 fanpeople may say.
It’s a pretty grim generation for JRPGs on non-portable consoles. Tales of Vesperia is still probably the best one, and it’s a B+ calibur game at best. (Well, okay, if you count Valkyria Chronicles, it’s probably the best one, and it, depressingly, sold quite poorly.)
All that said, if I were a betting man, I’d put my money on the PS3 for JRPGs at this point, because there are a ton more PS3s in Japan than there are 360s, and JRPGs are made for the “home market” first, with any worldwide release frequently an afterthought.
Edit: Oh, and if you DO speak Japanese and/or are into importing games, the PS3’s mysteriously seldom mentioned REGION FREE status (for purposes of games, anyway) makes it a far better bet.
I also don’t see Atlus moving SMT/Persona over to the 360 any time soon. If they ever get around to making another console one they might actually decide to make it for the PS3 instead of the PS2.
Right now they have yet to make a title for any “current gen” non-handheld console, so this is pure speculation, really.
I would have said the SNES if you want to play a lot of high quality ones. Then, the PS2.
After that, I’m not sure.
you forgot Blue Dragon (antoher Mistwalker title). Kind of annoying, but very much in the same vein as the older FF games. Not as good as Sakaguchi’s earlier stuff, particularly FF6, but a solid game all around. It was, in many ways, reminiscent of Dragon Quest 8 (in graphics style and types of enemies and stuff). Plus, true to japanese form, there’s an entire sub-group of enemies that are poo.
Atlus has begun development on Persona 5 for a PlayStation system. They haven’t said yet whether they mean 2 or 3.
Pfft, FF13, while definitely Not That Great, is absolutely better than the utterly underwhelming Tales of Vesperia. 
It’s definitely slightly better on the PS3, but as you allude to, nowhere near “better enough” to make it a console determination either way.
This generation of non-portable consoles really does suck for the genre. 
The genre itself is in a huge rut. While you can argue one or two being worthwhile, they generally haven’t kept pace with western RPGs by any means
Different tastes but:
Vesperia’s combat was fun, FF13’s was not.
Vesperia contained more characters I could like and more characters I could tolerate. (Only Karol was truly regrettable, while both Vanille and Hope get the huge thumbs down.)
Vesperia didn’t require me to read a datalog to follow the plot.
Neither game has a particularly good story, but FF13 is the clear loser for me.
I wouldn’t necessarily argue that JRPGs are in rut, PopeJewish, but considerign there’ve only been about 3 western RPGs in the past 5 years (and two of those - Mass Effect 2 and Fallout 3 - are hybridy FPS things. I can’t even name a ‘pure’ western RPG except Dragon Age from the past half decade. I’m probably forgetting one, but the point stands.), I don’t think it’s fair to say that it’s because they somehow haven’t kept pace with western RPG fare.
Ar Tonelico 3 is a PS3 game, one notes. Of course, it’s full of oh god Japan why are the underage girls taking their clothes off? but the Ar Tonelico series has a… er. Hm. I can’t say good story. A mindbreakingly horrifying series of stories? Worth playing, anyhow.
Ar Tonelico is definitely weird. I’d heard that the new one was coming to PS3, but I don’t think it’s out yet? Certainly not localized yet. Not even sure if it’s -going- to be localized.
I think there’s also an Atelier somethingorother (Atelier Rorona?) game for the PS3, but once again… no localization currently in sight. I think we’ve already established that if you’re going to import, you want a PS3.
It’s out. Just wanted to point to it for JRPG trend. And don’t forget the Nippon Ichi stuff is going to PS3 these days.
It’s sad that I knew Playstation had this one.
I mean, maybe if they could focus on some other genres, they might get somewhere with a majority of the market.
Copying the Nintendo Wii 4 years later is not going to do it, either.
I’m not sure what you’re trying to say here. Are you somehow implying that because the PS3 is the most widespread console in Japan, 3rd party developers are making JRPGs for it, and therefore, because those 3rd party developers, who only make JRPGs, are developing JRPGs for the PS3, that, somehow, this is IMPAIRING the PS3’s ability to get games in other genres? Truly, they are a victim of their own success.
C’mon, seriously.
Yup, definitely different tastes. And that’s okay, since as I think we’ve both established, neither of these are good enough that we have to go on crusades if other people don’t like them.
More Western RPGs are coming out of Eastern Europe and on the PC, which is a bit out of the scope of this thread but is really the place where that half of the genre pulls ahead (The Witcher at the forefront).