The Most Popular RPG Video Games

Final Fantasy XII is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix. The twelfth main installment of the Final Fantasy series, it was first released for the PlayStation 2 in 2006. It introduced several innovations to the series: an open world; a seamless battle system; a controllable camera; a customizable "gambit" system, which lets the player control the artificial intelligence (AI) of characters in battle; a "license" system, which determines what abilities and equipment can be used by characters; and hunting side quests, which allows the player to find and defeat increasingly difficult monsters in the game's open world. Final Fantasy XII also includes elements from previous games in the series, such as Chocobos and Moogles.

Wikipedia

Divinity: Original Sin II is a role-playing video game developed and published by Larian Studios. The sequel to 2014's Divinity: Original Sin, it was released for Microsoft Windows in September 2017, for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in August 2018, for macOS in January 2019, Nintendo Switch in September 2019, and iOS in May 2021. The game was a critical and commercial success, with it selling over a million copies in two months and being cited as one of the best role-playing games of all time, with praise given to its combat complexity and interactivity.

Wikipedia

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is an open world action role-playing video game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is the fifth main installment in The Elder Scrolls series, following 2006's The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 on November 11, 2011.

The game's main story revolves around the player's character, the Dragonborn, on their quest to defeat Alduin the World-Eater, a dragon who is prophesied to destroy the world. The game is set 200 years after the events of Oblivion and takes place in Skyrim, the northernmost province of Tamriel. 

Wikipedia

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt[a] is an action role-playing game developed and published by Polish developer CD Projekt Red and is based on The Witcher series of fantasy novels written by Andrzej Sapkowski. It is the sequel to the 2011 game The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings and the third main installment in The Witcher video game series, played in an open world with a third-person perspective.

Wikipedia

Final Fantasy VII Remake is a 2020 action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix. It is the first in a planned series of games remaking the 1997 PlayStation game Final Fantasy VII. Set in the dystopian cyberpunk metropolis of Midgar, players control mercenary Cloud Strife. He joins AVALANCHE, an eco-terrorist group trying to stop the powerful megacorporation Shinra from using the planet's life essence as an energy source. The gameplay combines real-time action with strategic and role-playing elements.

Wikipedia

Persona 5 is a 2016 role-playing video game developed by Atlus. It is the sixth installment in the Persona series, which is part of the larger Megami Tensei franchise. It was released for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 in Japan in September 2016 and worldwide in April 2017, and was published by Atlus in Japan and North America and by Deep Silver in Europe and Australia. An enhanced version featuring new content, Persona 5 Royal, was released for the PlayStation 4 in Japan in October 2019 and worldwide in March 2020.

Wikipedia

Nier: Automata is a 2017 action role-playing game developed by PlatinumGames and published by Square Enix. It is a sequel to the 2010 video game Nier, itself a spin-off and sequel of the Drakengard series. The game originally released for the PlayStation 4 and Windows via Steam, with an Xbox One port being published the following year with the subtitle Become As Gods Edition.

Wikipedia

Horizon Zero Dawn is a 2017 action role-playing game developed by Guerrilla Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The plot follows Aloy, a young hunter in a world overrun by machines, who sets out to uncover her past. The player uses ranged weapons, a spear, and stealth to combat mechanical creatures and other enemy forces. A skill tree provides the player with new abilities and bonuses. The player can explore the open world to discover locations and take on side quests. It was released for the PlayStation 4 in 2017 and Microsoft Windows in 2020.

Wikipedia

Stardew Valley is a simulation role-playing video game developed by Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone. It was released for Microsoft Windows in February 2016, and later for macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation Vita, iOS, and Android. Players take the role of a character who takes over their deceased grandfather's dilapidated farm in a place known as Stardew Valley. The game is open-ended, allowing players to take on activities such as growing crops, raising livestock, crafting goods, mining for ores, selling produce, and socializing with the townspeople, including marriage and having children. It also allows up to three other players to play together online.

Wikipedia

Fallout 4 is an action role-playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is the fourth main game in the Fallout series and was released worldwide on November 10, 2015, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The game is set within an open world post-apocalyptic environment that encompasses the city of Boston and the surrounding Massachusetts region known as "The Commonwealth". It makes use of a number of local landmarks, including Bunker Hill, Fort Independence, and Old North Bridge near Concord, as the bridge out of Sanctuary Hills.

Wikipedia

Assassin's Creed Valhalla is a 2020 action role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It is the twelfth major installment in the Assassin's Creed series, and the successor to 2018's Assassin's Creed Odyssey. Principally set in the years 872–878 AD, the game recounts a fictional story during the Viking expansions into the British Isles. Players control Eivor Varinsdottir, a Viking raider who becomes embroiled in the centuries-old conflict between the Assassin Brotherhood, who fight for peace and liberty, and the Templar Order, who desire peace through control. The modern-day portion of the story is set in the 21st century and follows Layla Hassan, an Assassin who relives Eivor's memories so as to find a way to save the Earth from destruction.

Wikipedia

Dark Souls is a 2011 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Namco Bandai Games. A spiritual successor to FromSoftware's Demon's Souls, the game is the second installment in the Souls series. Dark Souls takes place in the fictional kingdom of Lordran, where players assume the role of a cursed undead character who begins a pilgrimage to discover the fate of their kind. A port for Microsoft Windows was released in August 2012, which featured additional content not seen in the original PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. In October 2012, the new content was made downloadable for consoles under the subtitle Artorias of the Abyss.

Wikipedia

Dark Souls III is a 2016 action role-playing video game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows. The fourth installment of the Souls series and the final installment of the Dark Souls trilogy.

It is an action role-playing game played in a third-person perspective. Players have access to a variety of weapons, armor, magic, and consumables that they can use to fight their enemies. Bonfires serve as checkpoints. The Estus Flask is the consumable used for healing in Dark Souls III. Ashen Estus Flasks restore focus points (FP), which can be used for magic or weapon arts. Hidetaka Miyazaki, the creator of the series, returned to direct the game after handing development duties of Dark Souls II to others in FromSoftware.

Wikipedia

Diablo III is a hack-and-slash action role-playing game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment as the third installment in the Diablo franchise. It was released for Microsoft Windows and OS X in May 2012, the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in September 2013, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in August 2014, and the Nintendo Switch in November 2018. Set 20 years after the events of Diablo II, players choose to play as one of seven character classes – Barbarian, Crusader, Demon Hunter, Monk, Necromancer, Witch Doctor, or Wizard – and are tasked with defeating the Lord of Terror, Diablo, as in previous games in the series.

Wikipedia

The Outer Worlds is a 2019 action role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Private Division. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows in October 2019, with a Nintendo Switch version released in June 2020. The game received generally favorable reviews from critics.

Wikipedia

Star Wars: The Old Republic is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) based in the Star Wars universe. Developed by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was announced on October 21, 2008. The video game was released for the Microsoft Windows platform on December 20, 2011 in North America and part of Europe.

Wikipedia

Bloodborne is an action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Sony Computer Entertainment, which released for the PlayStation 4 in March 2015. Bloodborne follows the player's character, a Hunter, through the decrepit Gothic, Victorian era–inspired city of Yharnam, whose inhabitants are afflicted with a blood-borne disease. Attempting to find the source of the plague, the player's character unravels the city's mysteries while fighting beasts and cosmic beings.

Wikipedia

Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age[c] is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix. An entry in the long-running Dragon Quest video game series, it was released in Japan for the Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation 4 in July 2017, and worldwide for the PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows in September 2018. An enhanced version, Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition, was released for Nintendo Switch in September 2019, for PlayStation 4, Windows and Xbox One in December 2020, and for Stadia in March 2021.

Wikipedia

Assassin's Creed Odyssey is an action role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft Quebec and published by Ubisoft. It is the eleventh major installment in the Assassin's Creed series and the successor to 2017's Assassin's Creed Origins. It was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch on October 5, 2018, with a Stadia version launching alongside the service in 2019. Like its predecessor, the game features a large open world, and adopts elements from the role-playing genre, putting more emphasis on combat and exploration than stealth.

Wikipedia

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild[b] is a 2017 action-adventure game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch and Wii U consoles. Breath of the Wild is part of the Legend of Zelda franchise and is set at the end of the Zelda timeline; the player controls Link, who awakens from a hundred-year slumber to defeat Calamity Ganon and save the kingdom of Hyrule.

Similar to the original 1986 The Legend of Zelda game, players are given little instruction and can explore the open world freely. Tasks include collecting various items to aid in objectives such as puzzle-solving or side quests. The world is unstructured and designed to reward experimentation, and the story can be completed in a nonlinear fashion.

Wikipedia