Summary
RPGshave always been one of the most beloved genres of games. Most of the charm of this genre lies in its ability to let you engage with its world in deeper, more extensive ways. More often than not, you’re also given choices that let you shape the outcome of these worlds and their characters.
The 2010s also had some of the best RPGs ever made. From massive open worlds to smaller, linear, or more focused experiences, there were more than enough options for different types of RPG fans.
Mass Effect 2 is not only the best Mass Effect game but alsoBioWare’s magnum opus. The storytelling and characters, especially of your dozen squad mates, are a lot more intricate than its predecessor.
The story is even more personal for Commander Shepard. Omega and Illium are great, contrasting hub areas. The suicide mission is iconic, and everything about the game is done so extremely well. The loyalty missions, specifically, are a big highlight of the game, and its focus on developing your squadmates is commendable.
Yes, Skyrim is a popular choice, but it is a deserving one, nonetheless. It’s both similar and very different from Oblivion, which was more colorful and vibrant, as opposed to Skyrim’s dark fantasy feel.
The game lets you explore a massive open world full of dungeons, cities, and impressive little side stories, not to mention the more extensive questlines in the form of the Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild, The Companions, The Civil War, and much more.
While the original Persona 4 launched in 2008 on the PS2, the Golden version for the PS Vita came out in 2012 and is the definitive edition of the game, on top of being the biggest highlight of the handheld console. It made an already amazing game even better.
You play as a high school student investigating mysterious murders in the small town of Inaba. You have to balance school life with social-sim and dungeon-crawling mechanics. While Persona 5 might be more popular these days, Persona 4 is still an extremely beloved JRPG.
Although Persona has far exceeded the Shin Megami Tensei series in terms of popularity, SMT still remains the originator. While this game doesn’t reach the heights of the Persona series, it’s still a solid JRPG.
It leans more so into the SMT series’ hardcore roots, with punishing difficulty and complex mechanics, both gameplay and narrative-wise. Unfortunately, the game never escaped its Nintendo 3DS bounds, never receiving a remaster or a port.
Dragon Age: Inquisition was a return to form for the series after the underwhelming and somewhat disappointing Dragon Age 2. You play as the Inquisitor, tasked with closing rifts that threaten to destroy the world of Thedas.
However, a lot of players weren’t a fan of the lighter and more colorful tone of the game, being a departure from Dragon Age: Origins' dark fantasy roots. The MMO-like side activities and progression system weren’t a hit either, but the game is otherwise pretty good, with some solid characters and world-building that makes the experience worthwhile.
In a loaded year with great games like Bloodborne, Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain, Undertale, Pillars of Eternity, Arkham Knight, and more, The Witcher 3 still managed to be the biggest highlight.
It’s a massive jump up in quality from The Witcher 2 and is an extremely impressive game for a relatively small studio that had never made an open-world game beforehand. When players weren’t obsessed with Gwent and desperately chasing after the next card to add to their collection, they could undertake high-quality side quests and monster hunts, along with exploring stunning locations like Skellige and the massive city of Novigrad.
Dark Souls 3 is a solid improvement over Dark Souls 2 and might just be the best entry in the Dark Souls trilogy. It’s more polished, better balanced, and features some of the best boss fights in the series.
The world design and atmosphere are stellar, and so is the soundtrack. While it was hard for the game to be as genre-defining as Demon’s Souls or Dark Souls 1, it was still a fitting conclusion to the trilogy.
Persona 5 was not only the best RPG of 2017 but also one of the best games of that year. It’s impressive how all of its various gameplay systems work well in tandem, and everything feels like it’s carefully thought out, with a lot of work and effort put into every corner of the game.
The art direction, music, narrative, and gameplay all work toward the same cohesive vision with absolutely no compromise. It’s nothing short of an achievement to make a 100-hour-long game be extremely compelling from start to finish.
Obsidian’s Pillars of Eternity returned with a sequel in 2018. The world of Eora, which is also home to Avowed, is a very interesting place and different fromObsidian’s past works, although fans can’t decide if the first or the second game in this duology is better.
In classic Obsidian fashion, the game gives you tons of freedom in how you approach quests and dialogue, and your choices matter and have consequences. It didn’t quite reach the popularity of the studio’s other works like Fallout: New Vegas or The Outer Worlds, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a damn good isometric RPG.
Speaking of isometric RPGs, ZA/UM’s first (and so far only) game is one of the best-written games ever made. Seriously, you won’t find dialogues as good, as layered and rhythmic,in any other game.
Lenval Brown’s voice as the narrator is so extremely gripping you just want to hear that voice over and over again. Backed by an amazing soundtrack with a lot of industrial themes created by the band British Sea Power, Disco Elysium is one of the most unique and compelling games you’ll ever experience.
