Four Of The Best Roleplaying Games

Roleplaying games are probably my favourite type of adventure. Despite the current popularity of battle royale-focused gaming, roleplaying games are a haven for those who love to escape and explore. In this post, I’ll be diving into four of the best roleplaying games of all time.

The main thing about roleplaying titles is that they unlock aspects of our imaginations, making the impossible seem entirely real. Whether you’re into survival during a zombie apocalypse, exploring fantasy-based open worlds or slaying dragons, roleplaying games have it covered.

The interactivity and immersion offered by roleplaying experiences are what genuinely set games apart from other media. They allow players to become a hero in a strange new world. There’s a real power in being able to give that to people.

Four of the best roleplaying games

Roleplaying games are my favourite for a reason. The escapism they provide is more than just therapeutic, it’s necessary. The real world can be a tiresome place, so the ability to switch off and become someone else for a bit is quite productive for a creative person.

Although there are new and innovative titles being released all the time, these four games offer a depth of exploration that all kinds of players should enjoy.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

2011 was a notable year for games. Mostly, because it was the year that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was released upon the world. This game is possibly my favourite ever roleplaying game, and it’s racked up an incredible amount of my free time. It’s also one of the best-loved titles in gaming history and continues to be popular to this day.

Although it’s the fifth game in The Elder Scrolls series, it’s the one that introduced me fully to the franchise after originally playing TES IV: Oblivion on Xbox 360. It won a ton of Game of The Year awards, and it’s not hard to see why.

The frozen northlands of Skyrim are breathtaking, even almost a decade later. You enter the game as a prisoner and progress through the story to become the Dragonborn. Without spoiling the story too much, the Dragonborn faces epic quests, heroic battles, plus plenty of satisfying side content.

One of the most immersive things about this game is the scenery and its extensive lore. Skyrim’s level of environmental storytelling is phenomenal. You can traverse the open-world setting freely, with fast travel also an option if you get tired of the road. Most importantly, at no point does the progression feel so obviously linear that you’ll get bored.

Skyrim had a massive graphical update in 2016 with the release of Skyrim: Special Edition to remaster the game for Xbox One, PS4 and Windows. Also, Skyrim has a thriving community of creatives who create free downloadable modifications to add to the game. These all work to enhance your experience and level up your gameplay, which is one of the things that has kept the game so popular despite the passing of time.

If you’re looking for immersive gameplay and engaging storytelling to go alongside your adventures, Skyrim is one of the best roleplaying games in history.

The Elder Scrolls Online

Another instalment in The Elder Scrolls series, ESO (The Elder Scrolls Online) is an online multiplayer fantasy game based in the Elder Scrolls universe. Set on the same continent as Skyrim, ESO allows players to explore and adventure alongside other online players around the world.

The main difference with ESO is that it’s an MMORPG (massively multiplayer online roleplaying game), whereas Skyrim is a single-player experience. The multiplayer aspect of ESO is great. However, it can take a bit of getting used to, as can some of the dungeon and battleground aspects of the game. Regardless, it’s another exciting chapter in the Elder Scrolls saga.

Additionally, as an online universe, the world of ESO is constantly evolving. Regular expansion content is released throughout the year to keep the action fresh and engaging. The latest expansion features the homeland of the Khajiit, Elsweyr. So, there are always plenty of new areas to explore in the high-fantasy world of Tamriel.

If you enjoy roleplaying games that you can dive into with online friends, then The Elder Scrolls Online is a great place to venture into.

World of Warcraft

I’m a huge fan of World of Warcraft, and there’s a very good reason for that. It’s the same reason that it’s the world’s number-one MMORPG. It’s awesome.

The central story of World of Warcraft revolves around two feuding factions: the Horde and the Alliance. You get to pick your side when you create a character, and you can explore both sides of the conflict with different characters. You’ll develop your characters’ class abilities and experiences as you make your way through the massive (and I mean massive) world of Azeroth and beyond.

Storytelling and lore are central to World of Warcraft, and you’ll soon find that you become emotionally invested in one, or maybe both of your chosen faction’s struggles and emotional conflicts. This is no ordinary ‘kill stuff, get rewards’ kind of game. You’ll find yourself immersed in the history and player advancement challenges. World of Warcraft also has Player versus Player (PVP) content in the form of dedicated PvP servers, plus events such as battleground and arena matches.

One of the things I like most about World of Warcraft is that you can play the first 20 levels for free. For newcomers, this is a great way to see if it’s the kind of roleplaying game you’ll enjoy playing. So really, there’s no reason not to give it a try.

Fable

This list wouldn’t be complete without Fable. It was one of the very first console games to introduce me to the roleplaying genre. It’s also the game that showed me exactly how much personality can be packed into a set of pixels.

Fable was unique in that it was one of the first roleplaying games to heavily factor in things like player choice and consequence, which in turn affected both the storyline and eventually, your character’s appearance. Do evil things, end up looking evil, do good things and end up all lovely and shiny, etc.

But how easy is it to always do the right thing?

Fable is still a beloved franchise, despite the abrupt closure of Lionhead in 2016, seemingly grinding any future developments to a halt. Microsoft bought the studio out though so thankfully, there might be a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel for fans. Especially those who loved Fable 2 and 3. There’s been whispering of a Fable 4, but nothing concrete yet.

I do secretly hope that it is getting a reboot because Fable was an amazing, amazing roleplaying game. I’d highly recommend anyone to play through the games again from one to three, ignoring the now somewhat clunky-looking graphics and taking the story and experiences into account instead.

*Update: A Fable reboot is happening! Check out this page for more information. I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for future announcements on the new evolution of the beloved franchise on Xbox.

Four of the best roleplaying games (for now)

There’s no danger of me falling out of love with roleplaying games any time soon. There are also some other major franchises in the RPG category that I haven’t included here because, for me, these four will probably always hold the top spots. I’d love to hear what your choices would be though!

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please give it a share or a pin on Pinterest.

Let me know in the comments what your top four recommended roleplaying games would be. You might also enjoy this post on life sim games to help escape real life and this list of indie games for creative writers.