Hello adventurer We have all the best booty here, also known as news, reviews and features of top-notch PC games. Dig and level your knowledge statistics.
And there is a lot of diversity to boot. Right in the selection below we have interplanetary exploration, laser saber duels, bloodthirsty vampires, irradiated mutants who need to be hit with golf clubs, and much more.
So let's venture. Here is our list of the best PC RPGs ...
The Warlock 3: Wild Hunt
The Witcher 3 takes on all moral ambiguity, defying themes such as racism and fanaticism and of course, hunt for monsters from previous games and places them in a massive, mostly open world. The result is an extraordinary RPG that sets the standard for the adventures of the open world.
Each quest is an opportunity not only to learn more about the world, but to be drawn to it. A simple monster contract, directing the protagonist of the series Geralt to kill a monster (there are many similar missions, and for the first time feels as if we were seeing Geralt doing his real work), can be transformed into an elaborate series of consequences Loaded stories spanning several hours, closing and opening doors as it rushes toward a generally satisfactory conclusion.
Navigating the complex and dark fantasy world is a delight, even as oppressive misery threatens to send players spiraling into depression. Even the most innocuous of decisions can have a great impact on the world and its inhabitants, giving each action a great weight. Impressively, CD Projekt Red also managed to avoid stuffing the game with lint, such as inane collectibles and missions to kill x amount of monsters. Each mission has a purpose and a reward, even if it is unclear until many hours later.
Better yet, CD Projekt Red has certainly produced the best DLC ever made with Hearts of Stone and Blood & Wine, which is actually an even better search than the base game. Witcher 3 really is something that is devoured until there is nothing left.
Check our review of The Witcher 3 PC, and also our guide to the best Witcher 3 modules that you can use to improve your game.
Pillars of eternity
The Pillars of Eternity are an exceptional RPG; A game that evokes the best parts of classic Infinity Engine games like Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment (both found elsewhere on this list), as it strikes its own way with a convincing fantasy thread and a richly detailed original world .
It's Obsidian Entertainment at the top of their game, with beautiful writing that the studio is known for engulfed in a polished adventure, something they have struggled with in the past. Despite being a massive RPG with a daunting amount of options, everything has been crafted so carefully. Religion, philosophy, class war, the world of Eora is full of conflicts and crises. Each map region is fat with troubles waiting for the nosy adventurers, and even the most seemingly mundane missions can offer a world or world view. Opportunity to create a reputation, good or bad.
Instead of simply charging on the popularity of its spiritual predecessors, it builds on those strong foundations to create an experience that is not based on the past or nostalgia. It is progress, and the overall experience is one that reminds even more of tabletop RPGs than even those who are rooted in D & D.
Fallout: New Vegas
Fallout: New Vegas returns after being briefly eliminated by Fallout 4. We still love the latest Bethesda, with its improved shooting, crafting and building element fantastic building, but New Vegas is simply a better and more liberating RPG.
Obsidian took the Bethesda formula for a 3D, first person Fallout, and returned in all things that made the original isometric games so great. You really feel that you are making your own way through the game, instead of being pushed by an invisible director.
Unlike Fallout 4, which makes you a parent looking for your kid, New Vegas just makes you a denizen of the world. You carve your own way, interacting with who you want, being good, bad or anything else without feeling like you were against the grain. You can join the NCR, join the legendary Legion of Slaves, defend yourself from Las Vegas or just be an idiot to serve yourself. Or you can simply review our list of the essential modifications of Fallout: New Vegas and create your own game.
The writing, building the world and black comedy are fine, and while we are on the subject, what will it take Bethesda to let Obsidian take another crack in the universe?
Planescape: Torment
Although this list is not in a particular order, Planescape: Torment still deserves to be near the top. Black Isle Studios, the titans of the Dungeons & Dragons CRPGs, turned the convention into their head when they made this Planar adventure. There are no more typical fantasy races, morality is not defined, or at least mutable, and each attribute of character is linked to conversations and actions out of combat. It is a game of philosophy and discovery rather than a monstrous murderous adventure.
"What can change the nature of a man?" It's the question at the heart of Planescape: Torment. The Nameless One is an immortal amnesiac, who lives many lives, performs terrible and great acts, changing the lives of those around him, often for the worst. Waking up in a slab, the mystery of his past drives the Nameless through the Multiverse, one of the strangest settings of any RPG, where it deals with the gods, zealotic factions - like the Dustmen, a faction that believes Life is a fugitive forerunner of the ultimate existence: death - and mechanical and magical labyrinths.
The ambition of Planescape: The torment would have been useless had it not been for the superb writing that accompanied it. Chris Avellone and Co wrote a story saturated with shades and memorable characters that, even 14 years later, withstand the test of time and still has not been surpassed. It is the only RPG where you will find yourself searching through the protagonist's organs to find an important element, or where you can allow an NPC to kill you so she can experience what it would be like to murder someone. And all the time they will struggle with philosophical problems and questions of identity. If that sounds a little creepy and esoteric to you, then do not worry, since the Sin Nombre is also accompanied by a floating skull, talking, which is a flirtation without regret, so it's not all serious.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines was lamentably riddled with bugs at launch, to the point of being nearly unplayable, but with some patience (and the myriad of community patches) you might find yourself becoming besotted with this bloodsucker.
You've just become a vampire. Surprise! It's not all seducing teenage girls and sparkling, though, because the world of Vampire: The Masquerade - based on the excellent White Wolf tabletop game - is decidedly more mature. Set in modern Los Angeles, it's rife with undead politics and secret wars amid the glamor of Hollywood and corporate America.
The inventive quests, like to visit to the site of a vampire-run snuff movie set, an investigation in a haunted hotel that features no combat and plenty of scares that make even a vampire whimper, or a sneaky infiltration mission in a huge museum are Large affairs, and laden with multiple routes and plenty of opportunities to exploit vampiric abilities like mind control or shapeshifting. The setting of modern America is one of the most popular in RPGs, and Troika takes full advantage of it with little touches like vampires making deals with blood banks or infiltrating the Hollywood glitterati.
A cracking story of faction politics and prophecy; Wildly varied vampire clans to choose from at the start of the game, from the loopy Malkavians to the hideous, stealthy Nosferatu; Vampire: The Masquerade is a unique title that you really ought to pick up.
Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
Starting with the original Baldur's Gate in '98 and concluding with the expansion Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal in '01, the Bhallspawn series charts the trials and tribulations of an adventuring party from the rugged Sword Coast to the wealthy city of Athkatla, where Magic is mostly illegal, and beyond the tumultuous realm of Tethyr.
But it's in Baldur's Gate II where the series really hits its stride.
The Dungeons & Dragons land of the Forgotten Realms is meticulously recreated, filled to the brim with gorgeous environments just waiting to be explored. And within them, quests! So many bloody quests. Hundreds of hours of saving villages, delving into mines, fighting mad wizards, slaughtering Gnolls and even a trip to the Plans - explored in more detail in Planescape: Torment - and a deadly adventure into the Underdark.
Elevating these many quests is exceptional writing and dialogue. Baldur's Gate juggles wit and satire with solemnity and gravitas, drawing players into even ostensibly simple quests. It's the party of adventurers that join the hero who gets the best lines of course, and none more so than Minsc, the infamous Ranger who talks to his cosmic space hamster, Boo. Baldur's Gate II also has the distinction of having one of the best antagonists in any game: Jon Irenicus, expertly voiced by top-notch player of Villains David Warner. Arrogant, powerful, deformed and with a hint of tragedy around him, Irenicus has all the hallmarks of a classic villain, and even while he's not present throughout most of the game, his influence seeps into everything.
Mass Effect 2
By marrying the subgenres of speculative fiction and space opera, Mass Effect 2 is Bioware's greatest achievement in terms of world-building or, rather, galaxies. The exploration and pseudo-science of Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica's cinematic action and the fantastic elements of Star Wars or pulpy science fiction of the early twentieth century are all in the show and ingeniously combined in this tense suicide mission to save the galaxy.
Humans are the new kids on the block, recently joining the galactic community, and they must shake things up so that all the older races recognize a growing threat to their existence. How do they do that? With a soldier kicking ass, of course. Commander Shepard is a great character because he is your character. It is impossible to define it, because for many he is really her, and instead of being the hero of the hunt for glory who became a grizzled and oppressed veteran as he was in my game, he or she could have been a cruel bastard or Racist or a model of virtue that refuses to let anyone die.
The dramatic pieces and combat in the platoon, if not particularly interesting, are marked by the trademark of BioWare, an excellent dialogue and simply wandering around strange places, sticking its nose where it does not belong because that is what humans do in the Space, apparently. Suspend your disbelief for the last ten minutes, and you will find yourself in a hell of a science fiction trip.
The Old Scrolls III: Morrowind
Where Arena and Daggerfall have aged poorly, and Oblivion is a bit boring (in addition to the Shivering Isles expansion), the third installment of Elder Scrolls remains the jewel in the crown of the franchise, and even Skyrim can not beat it.
One of the first encounters you will have in The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind can kill you right outside the door. Leaving the ship from the prison that transports you to this dark and strange land, you will spend little time in the small port town, before venturing into the desert. That's where you'll find a magician. We say found, but it actually almost landed on you, falling from the sky. If you sack your corpse, you will discover a scroll that the magician believed gave him the power to flee. Ignoring the results of what was clearly your first experiment with the spell, you can cast it. That's when you'll be thrown high in the sky, able to see the whole earth from you amazing point of view ... until you fall to death
That early encounter - which is not a quest, is just something that happens - encapsulates what makes Morrowind so magnificent. There is a gigantic extraterrestrial landscape asking to be crossed, full of strange people and the promise of countless missions and my random adventures. It is a game where you can assassinate an important NPC, failing the main search, and yet you can keep playing.
Diversity is the name of the game in Morrowind. Where Oblivion had its European forests and medieval towns and Skyrim had its Scandinavian themes, Morrowind is absolutely unique, rarely looking like a real-world counterpart. The forests of giant mushrooms, houses made of bone and shell, great floating beasts - the adorable silt striders - for transportation, is a strange place. This variety extends to all aspects of the title. Skills, magic and equipment are much more abundant in Morrowind compared to their successors, and offer more in-depth personalization and substantially more features. At first it is confusing, full of choice but little direction, but when you begin to chart your own path, it becomes a game unlike any other.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II
We were hesitant about putting such a game full of bugs that it was released in a completely unfinished state on this list, but underneath Knots of the Old Republic II cracks and flaws is the best Star Wars game ever made, and an amazing RPG.
Where its predecessor, made by BioWare and not Obsidian, was a fantastic addition to the Star Wars universe complete with a twist worthy of The Empire Strikes Back, KOTOR II takes the venerable IP and takes it in a whole new direction. It is no longer the focus in the constant battle between the dark side and the light side, the republic against the empire. Instead, we are dealing with a narrative that explores the nature of force and what it means to be cut off and lost. It's a story of misfits and traitors and, in hindsight, sometimes feels a lot like Star Wars by Planescape: Torment.
The shadows of gray penetrate the whole adventure, since exile, the protagonist of KOTOR II, is forced to think of each action and how good deeds can engender evil, being increasingly pushed towards pragmatism. A depressingly sad game, it is as much about personal exploration as about galloping through the galaxy, entering into lightsaber battles and using force, although there is certainly a lot of that too.
Perhaps the best of KOTOR II is Kreia, the secret mentor of the Exile. The impetus for so much of the game, she pushes exile, scolds and attempts to teach her while presenting the force in ways much more interesting than any of the film trilogies managed. It makes the student mentor relationship between Luke and Yoda or Ben exceptionally boring by comparison.
Shadowrun: Hong Kong
Shadowrun Hong Kong is a nice setback to the 90's. Based on the classic table-top role-playing game, it's a neo-noir cyberpunk mystery with lots of magic, fantasy and combat elements reminiscent of XCOM. That makes a lot of things, and they are all just great. Set on a future Earth where science and the kingdom of the arcana struggle to coexist and beings like elves and trolls walk the streets together with humans, players find themselves in the shoes of a shadowrunner, a somber mercenary who dominates espionage .
A freeform character builder allows players to do all sorts of unusual classes, from spiritual invaders who can also enter a digital realm and fight computer programs to samurai running with a bunch of remotely controlled robots. Dumping a few points on the charisma also unlocks affinities for different types of people, be they corporate security, other shadowrunners or street gangs, opening up new dialogue options and avenues in their investigation.
Hong Kong is based on the two previous games, lavishing improvements on the series as revised (piracy) and affable characters. It's a more intimate game, too, as you investigate the death of your adoptive father with a group of Shadowrunners and find yourself engulfed in conspiracies, mystical events and a mystery with dreams that are plaguing the entire city.
Mount & Blade: Warband
The best of the series, Mount & Blade: Warband is an open world fantasy RPG crossed with a Medieval simulator, which basically means you will never have to pay attention to the real world again. Warband takes the players to a giant sandbox, where six factions are thrown to supremacy, there is no real story and it is left to the player to decide what they want to do.
Perhaps the showman in that will inspire you to become a master jouster and champion many tournaments, or maybe your eye for a good amount will take you down the rich merchant path, using your gold mountain to fund a mercenary army to protect You and it brings you glory or maybe you're just a good thief for nothing, and if so, then it's the bandit's life for you.
Traveling around the map, you'll surely find yourself trapped by enemies, or perhaps you'll be the one making the road, but either way, you'll surely get yourself into pieces. The combat is based on skills, requires fantasy footwork, excellent timing and use of the right weapon and correct attack for different situations. It's hard to get the hang of, but ultimately very rewarding. He probably has an army at his side, too, leading to some particularly massive conflicts. And that army can be trained, gain experience and be equipped with new equipment - although it will have to pay their wages.
With the multiplayer mode added in Warband and a wide variety of mods, including some awesome reviews, it's a game that will easily swallow your life if you let it.
Deus Ex
Oh God Ex. More than a hybrid FPS / RPG stealthy and one of the best cyber games on the PC, it is still more than deserving of a place on this list, since even 16 years in it is a joy to play and one Of the best games ever invented.
We could spend a great deal of energy remembering the dramatic narrative that weaves issues of conspiracy, terrorism and transhumanism along with intriguing characters a credible dystopian future. In the same way, we could go back and forth over the breadth of character customization, allowing players to perfect shadows and trenchcoat using J.C. Denton in a cybernetically enhanced soldier, an expert hacker or a ghost, lurking in the shadows. But what we really want to discuss is the incredible level design.
Each map represents a complex, mature sandbox for experimentation. Each combat encounter has the potential to play in very different ways, if you really participate in that encounter instead of sneaking past it. Secret paths, hidden caches, informants waiting to be bribed, and confidential information that opens new routes and garbage levels options, ensuring that when players discuss their experiences, it's as if they're talking about different games.
Dark souls
Dark Souls is the RPG of the masochist. A cruel and relentless battle through a desolate and dead land where the screen "You Died" begins to become an old friend, even if it is mocking, is a chastising bastard of a game, but infinitely rewarding. Each battle is a puzzle, a demanding skill, a good moment and an eye for the enemy. It is exhausting, because death is just a lost attack or a bad reading of an opponent away. But that makes each victory a very tough prize, bringing with it the potential to increase power and progression to the next, an even more challenging area.
The development of the free-form character and the design of the first-class enemy, both in terms of their grotesque and mechanical appearance difficult, are worthy of praise, but it is the sense of accomplishment - coming from surviving despite the odds - it does That dark souls are worth hammering, Despite constant failure.
An outdated philosophy to game design pervades the entire stressful adventure, but it is a blessing with modern complexity and scale. Different weapons and armor completely change the flow of battle and the feel of a character, with the weight of a sword and the weight of the silver armor that has a massive and tangible impact on strikes and movement. And segregated across the vast semi-open world, there is a cornucopia of magical artifacts and trinkets, rewarding players curious for their daring exploration of forgotten tombs and underground cities.
They can not save your soul, but the best Dark Souls mods still deserve a look.
Divinity: Original Sin
The last game of Divinity of Larian is not only a retrogression to the classic CRPG, is a continuation of them. It is a modern game, but based on the design philosophies of the classics like Ultima and Baldur's Gate.
Check out our brilliant divinity: "When I touch Divinity, I am back in the study of my parents, happily stirring up the task as I explore the vast city of Athkatla.I am exceeding my welcome at a friend's house by talking to Lord British. Not because the game is buying me nostalgically, but because it is able to evoke the same feelings: the pleasure of doing something crazy and see it work, the surprise when an inanimate object begins to talk to me and sends me to a portal, There is fancy and excitement, and these things have become rare commodities, but the Divinity: The Original Sin is full of them. "
It is an RPG that focuses on what gender can be, not what it has become. Where conflict is not just about fighting, where magic can be used to solve puzzles and manipulate the environment and not just to kill enemies, and where simple side quests can turn into rewards, and comes with a robust editor so that You can create your own adventure, and expanded the co-op system so that you do not have to take on the world alone. Stopping evil on their tracks is a job for friends, after all.
A sequel, cleverly titled Divinity: Original Sin II, is also being set to become an addition to this list.
South Park: The Stick of Truth
It should not be that good. South Park has never translated well when it comes to games, and the show itself has been in a bit of a rut for the last couple of seasons. However, this manages to be not only a great South Park game, but one of the best RPGs that could have the good fortune to play.
This is South Park at its best. From the perfect recreation of the city itself, to the scathing, insightful and often grotesque satire of games and pop culture. Fantasy trophies, the Kardashians, the Nazi zombies, the mystical powers of Morgan Freeman - all are there, all satirized. And all this is wrapped in an RPG based on many sources, from JRPG-style combat to Western affairs in the open world. There is even a healthy dose of the Metroidvania scan. The progression never stops - there's always something new around the corner, whether it's a new battle mechanic or a giant armed dildo.
A game where you can dress up a child as a valkyrie avenging and fighting Jack Daniels-cheating cheats and aliens obsessed with the anus is something they treasure. And it is one of the few games that we have given 10/10 - you can read why in more detail in our South Park: The review of Stick of Truth PC.
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls
When we first made this list, we did not even think about Diablo III. Blizzard had lost its way, creating a ridiculous economy and eliminating the need to actually go and look for the best pieces of loot. Playing Diablo III was not very satisfying.
Then everything changed.
The accumulation was huge, with the systems being completely overhauled. And then the expansion launched so many new features that it became difficult to remember why Diablo III was best avoided, aided by the fact that the problematic auction house was closed. You won a new lease in life, and now you would be loopy to not pick it up if you like your ARPG clickfests.
And the new additions keep coming. There is now a new way to progress through the game, scoring unique rewards while competing against other players. New areas and adventures have been thrown into the mix, and the seasons help keep the game relevant throughout the year. And all these additions came free. Diablo III is really a classic zero-to-hero story.
Game over! What did you do on our list? Not enough secondary searches? Let us know in the comments.
