PC Gamer - Best RPGs of All Time

Aubrielle · December 19, 2015

PC Gamer has updated their list of the best RPG's of all time. Some of their choices may come as a surprise. (Undertale?)

The best RPGs of all time
The role-playing game is the cornerstone of PC gaming. Long before shooters or real-time strategy, the earliest PC developers replicated their tabletop RPGs on the PC, building sprawling adventures filled with orcs and wizards and foul dungeons. Those early games slowly built on their tabletop origins, and RPGs eventually became so popular, their elements spread to other genres. Here are our favorites: the RPGs we’d tell anyone to play right now.

Our Criteria

Whenever we sit down to argue our way through a list of the best games, our first step is deciding what “best” even means. In this case, we’re identifying which RPGs are fun right now. Games age; they’re products of the technology they were built on, and the technology that seemed cutting edge 25 years ago may be junk today.

We value fun more than the historical significance of a game, and doing so helps us build a list that recommends what’s great today rather than publishing a popularity contest. But we don’t ignore a game’s impact completely—innovation and influence just has a lesser weight under our criteria.

The RPG genre is tough to boil down: by the most literal definition, every game is a role-playing game. This list represents our best definition of the canonical RPG—games that emphasize story; that let you inhabit a customizable character through skill points, inventory, and dialogue decisions; that include complex, controllable relationships with companions or non-playable characters. That leaves flexibility in how the game is controlled, what perspective it uses, or what setting it takes place in. Drawing these kinds of lines helps us provide a better service to you, we hope—though we've made some exceptions where we think it's worth it.

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Pongo · December 19, 2015

Yeah Undertale is a surprise.

And… no Dragon Age 2? Didn't PC Gamer think that it was the best RPG of the decade?

Notorious · December 19, 2015

It's not a bad list that puts my favourite games at the top

and that favours gameplay over eye candy (Morrowind > Skyrim, Fallout 2 > Fallout New Vegas and no Bethesda Fallouts). It's more like "RPGs we like playing now, looking back over time".

Maylander · December 19, 2015

I don't agree with everything on the list, but it's certainly not a bad list.

mbpopolano24 · December 19, 2015

Considering this is the usual clickbait article, it was not that bad. South Park??? At least Skyrim was not high, they had Fallout 2 / Planescape at the top, and Fallout 4 was not even mentioned. Yet again, some classics (Wizardy, Might & Magic...) were not even mentioned as well.

Stingray · December 19, 2015

Diablo 3 at #15 is the most hilarious part of the list.

LongMuckDong · December 19, 2015

Went in thinking I would hate the list... came out nodding my head in agreement.

Great list, great RPGs... need to get around to replaying VTM:B again now!

Feist · December 19, 2015

Pretty decent list.

The only title that I *know* I'd erase is Mass Effect 2, which in my eyes was nothing but a second rate "interactive movie" with the interactive parts being third rate action on dull levels. I'd sooner accept angry birds as a "real" rpg than that title.

azarhal · December 19, 2015

mbpopolano24 said:
Yet again, some classics (Wizardy, Might & Magic…) were not even mentioned as well.

You always need to take into consideration the age of the person making those lists, few people will play games very old games and some of them have very outdated controls now.

For example, my only Wizardry game was the 8th one and I never finished it (while I liked a lots of features, there is a lot more thing that just were not for me). I never played any M&M games as far as I know.

Saying that, Dungeon of Dredmor, Torchlight2, Diablo3 in a best RPGs of all time list?

Also, who ever wrote that got something for Black Isles developers.

Morbus · December 19, 2015

Is it just me, or is that list just an assortment or more or less good, more or less famous RPGs? I'm ok with opinions and preferences, but the order of that list makes no sense whatsoever.

BoboTheMighty · December 19, 2015

Morbus said:
Is it just me, or is that list just an assortment or more or less good, more or less famous RPGs? I'm ok with opinions and preferences, but the order of that list makes no sense whatsoever.

Well, it's best to play it safe and place the usual top five and then mix the others.
I'd rather categorize them by what each aspect of the game certain rpg do better than others... Best story, lore, quests, etc..

Pladio · December 19, 2015

No one here seems to have read their "criteria".

Wizardry and lots of older games would be considered chores for most people right now.

joxer · December 19, 2015

True and because of that reason "all time" lists should not happen.
They could have concentrated on "past decade" list instead.

And btw, Arx Fatalis is an awsome game. But is not RPG.

CelticFrost · December 19, 2015

It is someone's list and it got people to read and comment on it.

pibbur who · December 19, 2015

CelticFrost said:
It is someone's list and it got people to read and comment on it.

Yes. But it's better ttan most of them, as Found my favourites, and there were few candidates I strongly disagreed with. And - lets not forget that - only 2 games on the list I didn't have.

pibuur who says this on behalf of pibbur

Saxon1974 · December 19, 2015

Never understood the torment hype. Maybe because its different in world and story but the gameworld never grabbed me.

Never winter Nights 2 was garbage and maybe the worst camera ever created.

Mount & Blade I love but I don't really consider it an RPG.

OK list, lots OK good games on there.

rjshae · December 19, 2015

Any "best RPGs of all time" list that includes games published the past couple of years is dubious in my mind. At least wait five years to see if a game holds up.

Saxon1974 said:
Never winter Nights 2 was garbage and maybe the worst camera ever created.

Yes, the original campaign was panned for various reasons. But the second NWN2 campaign--Mask of the Betrayer--was well received. Have you tried it?

fatknacker50 · December 19, 2015

They're all RPG's, we're all winners. All this beating of chests is purely semantics.

Morrandir · December 19, 2015

Not my list, but a good list nevertheless.

Irian · December 19, 2015

I never got around finishing NWN2... Strange, I finished all the parts of the first one. But somehow, NWN2 always lost its appeal to me in mid-game.

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