My official gaming logoSo there are different types of RPGs. You've got Turn-Based, Real Time Action, Dungeon Diving, Hack n Slash, Adventure, Japanese(JRPG), Real Time Strategy, Grid Based Strategy. Basically, if there is either a progression bar, XP bar, or other kinds of progression... if it is a focal point of a major feature, I would classify it qs an RPG. And this list will have a mix of the subtypes.
Some of the entries will be individual games, some will be whole series, and some will be parts to the series. And you'll know as we go along...
This list also deserves 15 instead of 10... I loooooooves RPGs
So... let's get to it.
Top 15 RPGs
Here we go...
Honorable Mention 1: Minecraft: Punching rocks, building stuff, exploring. And earning experience for defeating monsters. It doesn't go on the list proper because I have barely played the game itself. I usually do creative mode and build stuffs. But I can appreciate what Mojang created.
Honorable Mention 2: Quest 64: A game from the Nintendo 64(of course) that has NOT stood the test of time visually. The camera was garbage... and not knowing what your spells can do for you late game so you can be prepared is terrible. But... knowing what to do in this game, I loved it. It was so much fun learning the Elemental spell system. It was a cool concept. And I loved it.
Honorable Mention 3: Sacred 2 Fallen Angel: Underrated Diablo clone. Hack... slack... XP... skills. But the gameplay is fun. And HUNDREDS of character levels. It was great.
15. Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: One of the best non traditional Star Wars game... and one of the best non traditional RPGs. Notable for the remake that is coming soon. And notable for the alignment system. Your actions and you dialogue choices determine whether you end up Jedi/Sith... and your color scheme change accordingly.
14. Two World 2: An Elder Scrolls clone, vast exploration, great combat. But... one of the coolest magic spell systems in any RPG. The card system. Not like "Magic: the Gathering spells" cards. No... you collect cards that represent spell parts. Like fire, earth, summon, etc. And as your skill grows, you can make more elaborate spells and stack cards. For example... I made a spell that looks like I'm throwing rocks... but they explode into fireballs on impact. One... the one spell for emergencies, where I throw multiple rocks onto the ground, and they all spawn Level 41 undead soldiers. Want a water ballon that turning into an icicle as it is flying through the air? You can do that. The spell system is unlike any others.
13. Fallout 4: So, 4 was the first Fallout game I ever played. I honestly didn't know about the series, and I play Elder Scrolls. The story is great. The gameplay is fun. The humor is... out there. The lore is frightening. And replayability is really high. Post-apocalyptic... but looks like the 50s? Still cool...
12. The Witcher 3: It is the only Witcher game I've played. And I loved it. The lore is amazing, the action is fun and engaging, the crafting is vast... but nowhere near the vast size of the world you are in. Monster hunting never looked so cool.
11. Borderlands(franchise): It is a looter shooter. THE looter shooter. But I like to refer to it as a FPS Diablo. You want that perfect gun with the right prefix? You farm. You need to be stronger? Grind. Want to work together to kick ass? Queue up. And...... you want to kick the most ass? You need to make the best build for you. Plus, the Pop culture references are great.
10. Final Fantasy(series): So, not ALL of the Final Fantasy games. But most of them. The gold standard of turn based RPGs. And innovators of the story driven action based RPGs. Job systems... iconic spells. And everyone that plays the games have a favorite to tell you all about. Mine is FF7. Iconic moment in gaming history when Aerith dies. Only game in the series to have a MOVIE sequel. Get those Crystals, ride those Chocobos, and summon that Bahamut variant.
9. X-Men Legends/Marvel Ultimate Alliance(franchise): 5 games. X-Men Legends 1&2 and Marvel Alliance 1,2,&3. Diablo style isometric hack n slash style RPG. Make a team of 4 heroes(sometimes villains). Mutants in the X-Men games, Marvel Heroes in the MUA games. With the latest being a Switch exclusive and a new developer, the game has DOZENS of characters that you can make your team of 4 from.
8. Stardew Valley: I've been playing this way too much lately. It is a farming simulator... mixed with a fishing simulator... mixed with a social simulator... mixed with a dungeon crawler. Play it how you want. And with XP for doing what tasks you want to do. All in a classic graphic style. One person made this game. Now... he is working on a follow-up about a Candy maker in a haunted factory. I'm in.
7. Super Mario RPG Legend of the Seven Stars: The last RPG Square made with Nintendo before they focused on the new Playstation 1(yeah...). A turn based RPG starring Mario, Peach, Bowser, and a slew of new characters. Paper Mario became a successful successor, but it never made the kind of impact for me that this game did.
6. Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning: When this game came out, I was sold. R.A. Salvatore + Todd MacFarlane. Why wouldn't I be? The lore building was awesome, the plethora of content was amazing, the combat was deep. And you could build your skill tree however you wanted. A deep crafting system. I was able to make equipment that was better than any Legendary in the game. Because I wanted to. The studio mismanaged their finances... and folded... after this ONE game. It did just get the HD remaster treatment from new IP owner, THQNordic. So I have hope we will get more.
5. Diablo(franchise): A series so great, it is its own subgenre. Diablo-clone. A term that fits the style. Isometric... Dungeon crawling... mindless monster slaughter. Loot drops, boss smashing. And a really good story. Diablo is Diablo. And with the "recent" Remaster of Diablo 2, the Dark Wanderer never looked so good.
4. The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim: The inside joke is that Skyrim will be released on everything. So far... so good. But there is a reason. As awesome as Morrowind and Oblivion are, Skyrim is one of those games that just oozes replayability... if you ever finish the first time. You can get lost doing the same thing... or nothing. While earning XP for doing the actions you want to use. Wanna be a hero? Do it. Wanna be a thief? Go steal. Wanna be an assassin? Be prepared to get locked in a coffin. Freedom in a franchise filled with freedom. So... Empire or Stormcloaks?
3. Pokémon(core series): 8 Generations of Pokémon games. Released in pairs. Remaster and re-released in pairs. Encouraging players to interact with each other to complete that Almighty PokéWiki known as the Pokédex. I don't care about most of the spinoffs. And I didn't watch the anime much. But the core games are the GREATEST fully customizable Turn based, one on one, RPG ever created. There are 900 Pokémon. You get to use... 6. What is your team?
2. The Legend of Zelda(franchise): THE definitive Action RPG series. Link. Zelda. Ganon. Triforce. If you are a gamer, you know at least one of those terms. And each new innovative title is innovative for the INDUSTRY, not just the series. The original had one of the first batteries for save files. Link to the Past innovated the style for 16-bit. Ocarina of Time set the standard for 3D ARPGs. Oracle of Ages/Seasons changed how the handheld games can work with connectivity. Wind Waker changed how the genre looks. And Breath of the Wild changed how open world exploration feels. Zelda is the Triforce Standard of ARPGs.
(Zelda... 2? What is 1?)
And the number one RPG game or series is.......
1. Persona(franchise): My first Persona game was Persona 3. The PS3 was already out(for a while), but here was this $20 game for PS2 at my local Wal-Mart. It was a $20 bet. What I got was a massive turn based JRPG mixed with a life SIM. A mature rated Final Fantasy game. And I was hooked. Persona 4 was PS2 as well, and I grabbed it. Improved every aspect of P3. And the story was more relatable. And then Persona 5/P5R came out... perfected everything. A group of protagonists that life kicked around... fighting against the world that kicked them down. New Elemental types. New combat system. And yet... the Reaper still freaks me out. I've been able to go back and play Persona and both parts of Persona 2. Great games. The two spin off games Persona Q and Q2... blends the feel of Persona with the original series(Shin Megami Tensei)... and worked so well on the 3DS. And Persona 5 Strikers was great massive hack n slash Dynasty Warriors style game that gave us more from that wonderful P5 cast.
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In Memoriam: Marvel Heroes Omega: Online MMO with Marvel Characters that played exactly like a Diablo game. I miss it. So much. I MISS THIS GAME!!! Would've been number 3...
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Folks, there you have it! I favorite RPGs/series.
What do you think? Did I miss one? Those of you that know me, the list have qny surprises?
Until next time... don't forget...
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