Top 15 Role-Playing Games of All Time

Playing a great role-playing game (RPG) is like living an alternate life for a short (or sometimes long) while. Here’s a list of some of the greatest experiences the genre has to offer:

Diablo

The defining ‘hack-n-slash’ RPG for a whole generation of gamers, there are few studios who’ve managed to reach anywhere close to spawning a franchise as popular as Blizzard’s Diablo series. While Diablo II: Lord of Destruction was fantastic, the reason I’ve picked the first game over it for this list, is that the art-style and storyline made the game feel a lot more grim, gritty and demented. And of course, for most of us it was the first time we’d played an action-RPG with so much depth where itemization and skill-customization was concerned!

Fallout 2

In a post-apocalyptic world torn by nuclear war, Fallout 2 told one of the most brilliantly woven stories ever written. The gameplay was turn-based and highly action oriented, and the way the desolate wastelands brimmed with small settlements of people from different walks of life, was absolutely legendary. To be able to explore the game’s deep and randomized world sprawling with super-mutants, ghouls, bandits and religiously misguided tribes, was the most satisfying RPG experience to date.

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The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind

When you think ‘The Elder Scrolls’, the first game that comes to mind is Oblivion, right? Way back in 2002, Morrowind was released and it was one of the deepest RPGs around - deeper than Oblivion. The game gave you the freedom to explore one of the most vast game worlds you could ever hope for, which had a lot more going on than its next iteration. If you wished to chill out, you could even head to the nearest Inn to sit by a fireplace and pick up a book in-game, and actually read it (the game had some of the most awesome short-stories)!

Chrono Trigger

A highly un-conventional RPG with a time-travelling theme, Chrono Trigger was the best RPG to come out of the early console generations. The story wasn’t the most serious of the lot, but that didn’t make the game any less memorable, which is something owed to the game’s unconventional and memorable roster of characters. If you missed out on this classic, you can always pick up the enhanced version that was released for the Nintendo DS last year.

Final Fantasy VII

FF VII is considered by many as one of the most overrated Final Fantasy games, but coming from someone who’s not played too much of the series, the game was beyond brilliant. In fact, you could credit FF VII for bringing the role-playing genre to the masses, with really easy-yet-deep gameplay and a storyline that broke away from the standard fantasy universe, and went for a far more real-world (relatively), dark setting.

The Witcher

Based on Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski’s series of short-stories, the Witcher followed the story of Geralt of Rivia, a professional monster slayer in a world littered with mythical beasts. This medieval fantasy was one of the best action-RPGs to come out in recent times, with a deep combat system that required you to time your attacks well, as well as use alchemy to brew potions to give you an extra edge against tougher enemies. The adult-themed RPG told a great story, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a fantastic modern action-RPG.

World of Warcraft

Most people see World of Warcraft as a mindless grind, where people play endlessly to level up and gather powerful gear to show-off to each other. It could be played that way, but for those who choose to follow the lore-rich storyline of the Warcraft universe, World of Warcraft has thousands of epic tales woven together, making for a highly enriched role-playing experience in a persistent world. In fact, if you wish to take it to the next step, you could even play on the game’s many role-playing servers, where people never get out of character!

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Planescape Torment

This off-beat RPG had you play as an immortal called ’the Nameless One’, who when killed, wakes up with a case of amnesia. The game sees you travel between different planes of existence as you try to find your true identity, and along the way you discover a highly conversation-driven RPG with some of the best scripts ever written for a game.

Deus Ex

Deus Ex is absolutely the best action-oriented FPS/RPG ever made. The game’s dark world was filled with government conspiracies that ran deep, while a plague called ‘gray death’ was wiping out the population, bringing society to the fringes of madness and paranoia. You could go about playing the game in many ways - you could hack your way through security systems, sneak around and skulk your way through shadows, or specialize in heavy guns and perforate your way through the game. The choice was yours, and the best part is that no matter what way you choose to specialize in, the game was equally fun!

Mass Effect

Mass Effect’s amongst the best action-RPGs to come out for the current console generation. This sci-fi themed game, put you in the boots of Commander Shepard aboard an experimental military spaceship called the SSV Normandy. Along with your customizable squad of soldiers, you could explore many of the planets in the game’s world, battle mercenary armies, and uncover an ancient threat that could resurface to wipe out all of mankind (and alien-kind!).

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

The best game to come out of the Star Wars universe, KOTOR is rated amongst the best sci-fi RPGs ever created. The game lets you assume the role of a lone Jedi in opposition of the Sith, four thousand years before the rise of the Empire. Just as any Jedi, you’d have to take a call between turning to the dark side, or staying with the light. Depending on your actions and moral-standing, the game would react to you differently.

Baldur’s Gate II: Shadow of Amn

Another classic by the RPG-giant BioWare, Baldur’s Gate II starts off with you in captivity, as you reunite with characters from the first game, and escape the clutches of a rogue mage. Shadow of Amn was one of the first RPGs to do squad-based gameplay perfectly, with a customizable band of recruits scattered throughout the game’s world.

Escape Velocity: Nova

One of the more obscure titles for PC RPG players, Escape Velocity: Nova was originally a Mac-only game. When it was ported to Windows back in 2002, its visuals were somewhat dated, but it had one of the deepest gameplay and multiple storylines that were sure to tickle the fancy of any space junky. You could fly around in your little space-ship to any planet, pick up missions, high-jack cargo ships, trade, mine-asteroids, and do all the cool stuff other space RPGs couldn’t dream of letting you do.

Neverwinter Nights

Fantasy-themed RPGs never go old, and the reason for that is games like Neverwinter Nights, which rather than picking up a colorful, light-hearted style, kept its world realistic and dark. In the game, you play the role of an adventurer who’s signed up to help the city of Neverwinter against the many problems come about, thanks to the spread of a deadly plague, called the Wailing Death.

Fallout 3

Unlike its predecessors, Fallout 3 went the FPS/RPG way, to make one of the most brilliantly designed gameworlds, come to life in first person. The post-apocalyptic setting was ripe for exploration - you could traverse the corroded metallic corridors of old ‘Nuka-Cola’ factories in the search of old technology, or explore underground settlements of people who think they’re vampires. There was just so much to do, and the best part was that you could break away from the storyline whenever you wanted, and head out to explore the game world however you wished to!

As always, if you think we’ve missed out on any great RPGs, please let us know via our comment system, which ones you think should have been on the list.