FF7 is an excellent JRPG, but for a different (and more modern) take on JRPGs, I recommend the Persona series, especially 4 (Golden if possible) and the latest 5. Persona 3 is excellent as well and similar in style to 4 and 5, but not quite as polished.
Persona blends building relationships (which helps with your Persona customization and hence dungeons) along with doing various day-to-day tasks such as studying, getting a part-time job, going on dates, and even minor things like taking care of a houseplant all of which help improve various stats. Some activities aren't available if you don't have a certain rank in a stat.
They provide an interesting exploration into various challenges in the modern world, but without coming across as heavy-handed.
I think the only real problem is that Persona 5 holds your hand for a very long time as it introduces the system so it's not until around the end of the first boss area that all the options open up which is about 6 hours into what can be a 100 hour game.
Persona blends building relationships (which helps with your Persona customization and hence dungeons) along with doing various day-to-day tasks such as studying, getting a part-time job, going on dates, and even minor things like taking care of a houseplant all of which help improve various stats. Some activities aren't available if you don't have a certain rank in a stat.
They provide an interesting exploration into various challenges in the modern world, but without coming across as heavy-handed.
I think the only real problem is that Persona 5 holds your hand for a very long time as it introduces the system so it's not until around the end of the first boss area that all the options open up which is about 6 hours into what can be a 100 hour game.