# Any good newish RPGs out there? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 30, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162 "2014-01-30T20:52:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/1 "2014-01-30T20:52:12Z")
I’m in the mood for one. I haven’t really been keeping up with what’s new and great out there in the gaming world. Shadowrun looks intriguing, but it doesn’t seem to get great reviews. Anything out there similar that people can recommend? PC games, please. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/2 "2014-01-30T21:38:05Z")
Have you given **Dark Souls** a try? It’s about 2.5 years old, now, with a sequel coming out in March. It’s _sort of_ an RPG. It has a reputation for being extremely hard, and it can be if you don’t learn from your mistakes and take it slow. It’s NOT like an Elder Scrolls game where you can easily win by rushing in, bashing the fuck out of tings and get the loot. But it is a lot of fun. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/3 "2014-01-30T21:57:51Z")
I haven’t played Dark Souls - looks interesting, but the Steam page says a controller is strongly encouraged. I don’t have one, and honestly, that’s a little bit of a turnoff for me. Does it really need it? And am I wrong? Seems to me that mouse & keyboard is better for most of the games I like. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/4 "2014-01-30T21:59:36Z")
Not out yet, but Dragon Age III and Witcher III are out this year. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/5 "2014-01-30T22:04:34Z")
[Banner Saga](http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/the-banner-saga) and [Broken Age](http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/broken-age-act-1) both look cool, anyone played either yet? ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/6 "2014-01-30T22:09:17Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > I haven’t played Dark Souls - looks interesting, but the Steam page says a controller is strongly encouraged. I don’t have one, and honestly, that’s a little bit of a turnoff for me. Does it really need it? And am I wrong? Seems to me that mouse & keyboard is better for most of the games I like. It really does need one, yes. It was a console game first, and then the port to PC was kind of lazy and crummy, so the keyboard and mouse controllers are terrible. Everyone I know who used them switched to a controller or bought one. In addition, there’s a fan-made mod that’s also highly recommended called DS Fix was adds better resolutions and frame-rates for PCs. And these days, I don’t think there’s a good reason not to have a controller for PC. A wired X-Box 360 controller is like $30, maybe less on sale, and is supported by Windows, no software or driver download required. So many games out there either outright require it, or are just made so much better. The game in question, for one, but also things the Batman: Arkham series, the Assasin’s Creed series, and platformers like Spelunky, Braid, etc… ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2014, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/7 "2014-01-30T22:54:58Z")
As noted in other threads, Might and Magic X & Wasteland 2 were recently released. I’m waiting for them to go on sale. Picked up Banner Saga during a recent sale – given my mostly Scandinavian heritage I had to – but haven’t got around to playing yet. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2014, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/8 "2014-01-31T07:01:00Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > [Banner Saga](http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/the-banner-saga) and [Broken Age](http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/broken-age-act-1) both look cool, anyone played either yet? I’ve played Banner Saga. It was fun to start with, but the tactical battles and the game’s progression got really repetitive really quickly. It’s a very limited game. Fun concept but I wouldn’t go into it expecting too much playtime. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2014, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/9 "2014-01-31T07:36:03Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > [Banner Saga](http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/the-banner-saga) and [Broken Age](http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/broken-age-act-1) both look cool, anyone played either yet? I’ve played through the first act of Broken Age that’s already out. It’s an excellent example of a point-and-click style adventure game with the quirky humor and visuals we expect from a Double Fine game. Not an RPG, though. I have high hopes for [Stick of Truth](http://www.southparkstudios.com/games/stick-of-truth), but that’s due in May. I’ve been having a lot of fun playing Borderlands 1 and 2. It’s an action-heavy RPG, but far more RPG than, say, BioShock. I have played Shadowrun, and I’d say it’s worth buying when it’s cheap. I enjoyed the top-down turn-based combat, but the game needs more content. It has been built for fan-created scenarios, so you might want to check out that scene. ---
**Author:** ![Airk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Airk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airk)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2014, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/10 "2014-01-31T17:02:40Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > I’ve played Banner Saga. It was fun to start with, but the tactical battles and the game’s progression got really repetitive really quickly. It’s a very limited game. Fun concept but I wouldn’t go into it expecting too much playtime. I played Banner Saga and deeply enjoyed it, but I offer the following caveats: A) It’s not long, though it does have substantial replay value. B) It’s not anything like a traditional RPG. If you’re looking to fulfil your “I create a character and watch his numbers go up.” “RPG” itch, then it absolutely will NOT do it for you. That said, I really liked it, and am looking forward to doing another playthrough soon. ---
**Author:** ![Mekhazzio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b38774/32.png) [@Mekhazzio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mekhazzio)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2014, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/11 "2014-01-31T21:37:43Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > I’ve played Banner Saga. It was fun to start with, but the tactical battles and the game’s progression got really repetitive really quickly. It’s a very limited game. Fun concept but I wouldn’t go into it expecting too much playtime. I wouldn’t even call Banner Saga an RPG. It’s got a story, it’s got characters with progression, but the focus is unquestionably the tactical battles. If you’re not into those, it’s not the game for you. It’s more of a Western entry to the Fire Emblem / Final Fantasy Tactics / etc genre. Personally, I loved it and proceeded to replay it twice immediately after the first playthrough, so I don’t much get the “repetitive” charge people make on it. What it does, it does well. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2014, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/12 "2014-01-31T22:11:30Z")
“Kingdoms of Amalur” was released 2? years ago and is now very cheap. It’s on sale on Steam this weekend. I haven’t played it, but I may well pick it up at the sale price. ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/13 "2014-02-01T00:56:34Z")
> [@Mekhazzio](#): > > I wouldn’t even call Banner Saga an RPG. It’s got a story, it’s got characters with progression, but the focus is unquestionably the tactical battles. If you’re not into those, it’s not the game for you. It’s more of a Western entry to the Fire Emblem / Final Fantasy Tactics / etc genre. > > Personally, I loved it and proceeded to replay it twice immediately after the first playthrough, so I don’t much get the “repetitive” charge people make on it. What it does, it does well. Yeah, I watched a stream of it an it’s firmly in the turn-based tactical combat genre. It’s a Fire Emblem… eh, not knockoff, but definitely in the genre. To people not familiar with the genre, I’d describe it as something closer to Civilization, if they took out city management and just gave you military units instead, before I’d go to RPG analogies. The closest analogy is really Warhammer or Battletech or other tabletop wargames; I guess a fair comparison is “D&D where you control all the characters and with the meaningful statistical character progression drastically reduced.” Edit: And as for Broken Age, I haven’t played it, but isn’t that a traditional Point+Click adventure game? I expect it’s closer to The Longest Journey or Monkey Island than, say, Baldur’s Gate. ---
**Author:** ![Wolverine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba9def/32.png) [@Wolverine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolverine)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/14 "2014-02-01T05:39:39Z")
I’ve played both Banner Saga and Broken Age. Broken Age is an adventure game and not a RPG. The Banner Saga might be better explained as a cross between Oregon Trail and a turn-based tactical RPG. If you have the right type of itch, the Banner Saga can scratch it for a little while. I know you said PC games, but Bravely Default (a JRPG) comes out in a week for the 3DS. The press for that game has been quite positive. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/15 "2014-02-01T14:00:24Z")
Though I wanted RPG, I’m open to other things. I did end up getting Banner Age. At first, I was a little turned off by it, as it seemed to move sooo slow, but after 30 minutes of playing I got into it. So far, I’m liking it; I would have preferred something a little more upbeat and more RPGish, but I didn’t want to shell out more than $20-$30 and couldn’t find anything that really struck me even above that price point. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/16 "2014-02-01T16:57:32Z")
I did just buy Kingdoms of Amalur, since it and all its DLC can be had on Steam for $11.99 for the next couple of days. I’ll let you know how I feel about it. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/17 "2014-02-01T22:19:33Z")
> [@Johnny\_Angel](#): > > I did just buy Kingdoms of Amalur, since it and all its DLC can be had on Steam for $11.99 for the next couple of days. I’ll let you know how I feel about it. I have that one! I actually liked it quite a bit, though the general consensus was that it sucked. ---
**Author:** ![DeptfordX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DeptfordX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeptfordX)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/18 "2014-02-01T22:55:04Z")
I did get bored of it, but i had reasonable fun for about 20 hours, which didn’t get me far into that game, it’s huge. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2014, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/19 "2014-02-01T23:29:59Z")
Hearing you guys talk about The Banner Saga not being an RPG is funny. You do realize there is an entire RPG genre known as [Tactical RPG](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tactical_role-playing_game), and it happens to be my favorite genre of video game ever (Fire Emblem, Shining Force, Disgaea, etc)! The Banner Saga is absolutely an RPG. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2014, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162/20 "2014-02-02T01:08:25Z")
It’s a while off release day yet, but Paradox’s [Runemaster](http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?750908-Runemaster-Announced-From-Chaos-Rises-a-Norse-Legend) looks promising. **Runemaster - From Chaos Rises a Norse Legend** > [@](#): > > With Runemaster, Paradox Development Studio invites you to a fantasy realm etched in the rich history of Norse mythology. > In this RPG, you are a hero in a time of chaotic upheaval. Explore the six worlds of Norse mythology, amass your forces and vanquish your enemies on the battlefield in the name of your chosen God. Will you choose to enforce change for those that crave it or will you seek to maintain the status quo - for better or worse? > > You, alone can determine the fate of the world. > You, alone are the master of your own saga. > Announced Features: > > - Vast vistas to explore: Wander the six worlds of Norse myth, from the lofty forests of Midgard to the fires of Muspelheim. Each time you start a new campaign, the world is procedurally generated to ensure each adventure is a venture into the exciting and unknown. > - Rich tactical combat: Recruit and command an expansive range of units with unique abilities. Learn to use your troops – and the terrain of the battlefield – to crush your enemies. > - Emergent storytelling: Who you are and the choices you make have a direct impact on the journeys you embark on. The game’s procedural quest system will take note of your deeds and challenge you accordingly. No two playthroughs will ever be the same. > > Release date: Q4 2014 > Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-good-newish-rpgs-out-there/680162.md?page=2)