Persona series drives me up the fucking wall. I've tried 1-3 but I finally came the conlcusion that I just don't give a flying fuck about being a Japanese high schooler. I know there's some creepy demographic out there that loves this shit but count me out.
Never played IX, but Dragon Quest VIII is a lot of fun but it's like a freaking jrpg marathon - the thing just keeps on going and going and going. Serious time is needed if you want to go through it. Good game though.
Blue Dragon is basically worthless without the hard patch. You NEED that patch if you're even considering it, and don't let the name fool you. The "hard" mode is more like your typical normal jrpg difficulty. Overall it's a basic by the numbers jrpg with some very pretty graphics - as long as you can handle the screen tearing and occasional slowdown.
Fuck Eternal Sonata in the ass. Worst of the worst.