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Best rpg games on GamesNostalgia

RPG games, or role-playing games, have come a long way since their humble beginnings as pen-and-paper adventures. From classic tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons to immersive virtual reality experiences, RPG games have captivated players with their rich storytelling, character development, and strategic gameplay.

Some of the first computer games were RPGs. Initially, they were entirely text-based; then, from Dunjonquest: Temple of Apshai, they began incorporating simple graphics. Richard Garriot's Akalabeth: World of Doom was the first first-person RPG, but Lord British real masterpiece was the Ultima series, one of the most important franchises in the RPG genre, along with Wizardry, Might and Magic, and others. Traditional computer RPGs feature turn-based combat, as seen in The Bard's Tale, but also in other titles such as SSI's Dark Sun: Shattered Lands.

The dungeon crawler sub-genre was made popular by Dungeon Master in 1987 and later by Eye of the Beholder and many other titles like Ishar: Legend of the Fortress. These titles featured a first-person view, in pseudo-3D, with real-time combat.

The Immortal and Darkmere: The Nightmare's Begun are examples of isometric RPGs, and also, the masterpiece Ultima VII: The Black Gate uses a kind of isometric top-down perspective.

To see a full 3D graphical implementation but also a more faithful roleplaying experience, we need to wait for The Elder Scrolls: Arena and The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall. These games included gameplay that involved exploring vast, detailed landscapes and interacting with lifelike characters.

The RPG genre doesn't end here because we also have Japanese RPGs, like Sweet Home, or tactical RPGs like Jagged Alliance.

Finally, we cannot forget the legendary action-rpg Diablo, the first chapter of the popular series, probably the most iconic name in all the computer role-playing games genre, a title that redefined the genre with randomly generated levels and frenetic hack-and-slash combat.

The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall dos

The Elder Scrolls II - Daggerfall is an open-world single-player action RPG by Bethesda Softworks. It was released in 1996 on the PC. It's the second entry in the popular Elder Scr...

Year: 1996 Genre: Role Playing

action-rpg fantasy freeware medieval non-linear open world rpg sandbox sword and sorcery

Princess Maker 2 dos

Princess Maker 2 is the second chapter of the life simulation series Princess Maker, developed by the Japanese company Gainax. In the game, you are a father that has to grow a child received by a god and make her a princess.

Year: 1993 Genre: Role Playing

anime fantasy rpg

Lands of Lore: The Throne of Chaos dos

Lands of Lore: The Throne of Chaos, the first chapter of the Lands of Lore series, is a real-time dungeon-crawling rpg viewed from first-person perspective (like Dungeon Master or Eye of the Beholder).

Year: 1993 Genre: Role Playing

dungeon crawler fantasy rpg sword and sorcery

The Elder Scrolls: Arena dos

The Elder Scrolls: Arena is the first game in The Elder Scrolls series, developed and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is an epic fantasy open-world role-playing game published in 1994 for MS-DOS.

Year: 1994 Genre: Role Playing

action-rpg fantasy medieval non-linear open world rpg sandbox sword and sorcery

Dungeon Master amigadosatari-st

Dungeon Master, developed by FLT Games initially in 1987 for the Atari ST, is an grid-based 3D action role-playing game and one of the best selling Atari ST games of all time. This...

Year: 1988 Genre: Role Playing

atari st dungeon crawler fantasy party-based real-time rpg sword and sorcery

Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss dos

Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss is a fantasy action RPG developed by Blue Sky Productions (Looking Glass Studios) and published by Origin Systems in 1992 for DOS. It was later ported to FM Towns, Playstation and other platforms.

Year: 1992 Genre: Role Playing

3d dungeon crawler fantasy first-person rpg

Ultima VII: The Black Gate dos

Ultima VII: The Black Gate is a role-playing game and seventh in the line of Ultima games designed by Richard Garriott, it was developed and published by Origin systems, and released for DOS in 1992.

Year: 1992 Genre: Role Playing

fantasy medieval party-based real-time rpg sword and sorcery

HeroQuest amigados

Heroquest is a conversion of the famous fantasy-themed board game into an isometric RPG created by Gremlin Graphics and released in 1991 for the Amiga, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Atari ST and MS-DOS.

Year: 1991 Genre: Role Playing

board game dungeon crawler fantasy hotseat licensed multiplayer party-based rpg sword and sorcery wizards and witches

Castle of the Winds windows-3.x

Castle of the Winds is a roguelike fantasy RPG developed by Rick Saada for Windows 3.1 and released by Epic MegaGames in 1993. It's the first episode of a quite famous series and o...

Year: 1993 Genre: Role Playing

fantasy freeware roguelike rpg top-down turn-based rpg windows3x

Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed dos

Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed is a sci-fi RPG developed by SSI and released for DOS only in 1992. It's the sequel to Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday. The game uses the so-called G...

Year: 1992 Genre: Role Playing

gold box licensed rpg science fiction turn-based rpg

Zelda Classic mac-osxwindows

Zelda Classic is a fanmade faithful reproduction of The Legend of Zelda, the legendary videogame created by Nintendo. This remake, created by Armageddon Games, is an exact replica of the NES version released in 1986.

Year: 2000 Genre: Role Playing

action-adventure adventure-rpg fangames fantasy jrpg remake rpg zelda

Ultima VIII: Pagan dos

Ultima VIII: Pagan is the eighth chapter of the role-playing video game series created by Richard Garriott and published by Origin Systems. It was released in 1994 for DOS only. Ul...

Year: 1994 Genre: Role Playing

action-rpg fantasy medieval role-playing rpg sword and sorcery

Ultima VI: The False Prophet dosamiga

Ultima VI: The False Prophet, developed by Origin Systems, is the sixth part of the role-playing video game series of Ultima. It was released in 1990 for DOS, then in 1991 and 1992 for Commodore 64, Amiga, and Atari ST.

Year: 1990 Genre: Role Playing

fantasy rpg sword and sorcery turn-based rpg wanderer

Ambermoon amiga

Ambermoon is the second game of the never-finished Amber trilogy created by the German studio Thalion and started with Amberstar. Designed by Karsten Köper and Erik Simon, the game was published in 1993.

Year: 1993 Genre: Role Playing

3d amiga original game fantasy first-person non-linear open world rpg texture map top-down unreleased wanderer