WRPG recommendations?

[Firmament1]

I've played a lot of JRPGs, like Tales, Xenoblade, SMT, Final Fantasy... And I've been trying to get into WRPGs recently.

The games and series that I've been looking at:

- GreedFall
- Mass Effect
- Dragon Age
- Knights of the Old Republic
- Divinity: Original Sin
- Deus Ex

Any other recommendations, and would you recommend the ones that I've rattled off?

(Also, I didn't find either New Vegas, or The Witcher 3 interesting)

 

[Deleted member 49319]

Baldur's Gate II, be prepared for the learning curve though.

 

[Neoleo2143]

Disco Elysium. This is one of the best written rpgs ever.

 

[Etrian Darkness]

Shadowrun: Dragonfall. I've been thinking about it a lot lately and just had all round good that game is.

 

[skeezx]

the ones you listed are pretty much the WRPG 101 itenerary (with exception of GreedFall). so i'd pick and choose one of those first and foremost

 

[Zukuu]

Also, I didn't find either New Vegas interesting

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Then there is no helping you heathen.

Seriously, if you don't like that, don't bother with the genre pretty much. Give Mass Effect 1-3 a try and if it still doesn't click, move on.

As for cRPGs (I don't know why you include them in the WRPG genre), Divinity Original 2 is the best of the past decade or so.

 

[EVA UNIT 01]

All 3 shadow runs.
Disco elysium.

If you go mass and dragon age OP please note all dlcs are pretty much required for full payoff. Their pretty cheap now in bundles though.

 

[Dogui]

Shadowrun Returns: Dragonfall and Hong Kong are great games to recommend to a JRPG fan because they nail the party focus that most western games lack.

 

[Mullet2000]

I tihnk the Mass Effect Trilogy would be a good place for a newcomer to start.

If you want something more along the lines of a PC-style WRPG: Skip Divinity: Original Sin and go right to Divinity: Original Sin II. It's pretty accessible and is fantastic, and the combat being pure turn-based rather than real-time would ease you in a lot better than, say, a Pillars of Eternity.

 

[Sera]

Divinity original sin II
Shadowrun Dragonfall & Hong Kong (don't play Hong Kong before Dragonfall, its hard to go back after the QoL features in Hong Kong)
Tyranny

 

[Anno]

Can you determine why you didn't like either F:NV or W3?

 

[The Last Laugh]

Dragons Dogma

 

[Transistor]

If you can deal with dated combat, Morrowind gives one of the greatest feelings of exploration and discovery ever in a video game

 

[Proven]

Fallout: New V.....

 

[Deleted member 8860]

Gateway to the Savage Frontier
Ultima IV

 

[texhnolyze]

(Also, I didn't find either New Vegas, or The Witcher 3 interesting)

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There's no hope for you OP. Those are among the best of WPRG offerings.

Not every (sub)genre is for everyone.

 

[CaptainK]

(Also, I didn't find either New Vegas, or The Witcher 3 interesting)

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Can you elaborate why? Was it the narrative, the gameplay, the open-world structure ...?

 

[Massicot]

Anecdotal, but my friends who are mostly JRPG fans seem to 'take' most strongly to the Mass Effect trilogy. IMO, something about how the narrative plays out (very character-focused, Player-character isn't a blank slate, etc), strong 'party' dynamic, a combat system that isn't overly bogged down by dice rolls or underlying stats is a reason for that.

 

[Gundam]

If Deus Ex is on your list, I can't recommend adding Prey 2017 enough. I think they're distinct enough from WRPGS though I get the association.

Also on your list, KOTOR is probably the best marriage of oldschool WRPGs and Newschool. Modern storytelling sensibility with older style combat in a way.

 

[Enduin]

Mass Effect is fantastic, though pretty different from most others as a shooter, especially in ME2/3.

Dragon Age and Knights of the Old Republic are very good starter WRPGs and starter RTWP(real time w/ pause) games that you can then take into more hardcore and complex W/cRPGs like Baldur's Gate, Pillars of Eternity and Tyranny.

 

[EduBRK]

Disco Elisium

 

[The Last Laugh]

Gateway to the Savage Frontier
Ultima IV

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Ooooo I like you.
OP listen to this person


I will also add Icewind Dale

 

[Gallows Bat]

Mass effect is the best. Skip Andromeda though.
Divinity original sin 2
Elder Scrolls Skyrim of course

Witcher 3 is maybe the best wrpg ever so if you don't like that I'm not sure you'll like anything else haha.

 

[devSin]

Assassin's Creed Odyssey (no joke).

From your list, Dragon Age is probably the gold standard.

 

[Sir Garbageman]

Depends on what you are looking for.

Third person action - Witcher 3 or Assassin's Creed Odyssey
Third person shooter - Mass Effect trilogy
First person - Fallout New Vegas
Real time w/ pause - Pillars of Eternity 2, Dragon Age Origins or Baldur's Gate 2
Turn based - Divinity Original Sin 2 or Shadowrun
Dialogue / story focus - Planescape Torment or Disco Elysium

 

[Deleted member 13645]

I think Dragon Age: Inquisition gets a bad rap. Playing it again recently since I want to finally see the Trespasser DLC and it's a really fun RPG. The combat is fun, lots of options to combo abilities. The characters are great. Lots of good storylines and lore in it. It's quite good looking. I think the amount of padding you can get stuck in really killed a lot of people's enjoyment. If you go in knowing that you should keep moving and not get side tracked by the billion things to do in each zone you'll have a good experience with it.

 

[TheMango55]

Skyrim

People might consider it shallow, but there's no game that gives you the feeling you can go anywhere and do anything like Skyrim.

 

[Stiler]

When it comes to Divinity, I'd recommend going straight into Divinity: Original Sin 2. It's just an overall much better game then Original Sin 1, and you will not be lost or anything either there's not really any connection to the first game.

The Elder Scrolls are good games to try, however if you didn't like New Vegas I'm not sure you'd like them as they play pretty similar in terms of structure/gameplay (but obviously a different setting).

Disco Elysium is a great new wrpg that focuses on narrative and story, a LOT of reading but if you don't mind that it might be up your alley.

 

[7thFloor]

There's no hope for you OP. Those are among the best of WPRG offerings.

Not every (sub)genre is for everyone.

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Nah. OP you need to specify what sort of experience you're looking for.

 

[TacoSupreme]

Shadowrun: Returns. Shadowrun: Dragonfall. Shadowrun: Hong Kong.

Seriously. They're freakin' awesome, have great gameplay, possess so much of what was great about oldschool WRPGs, without all of the jank. And they're like 75% off this weekend on Steam.

 

[phant0m]

Divinity Original Sin 2 is one of the best games I've ever played, period. Buy it on your platform of choice, though I'll plug that the Switch version can sync with Steam saves and its fucking amazing.

 

[Ruby-Eyed Witch]

Well that really depends on what kind of WRPG you want.

Might and Magic 3 through 8 (I recommend World of Xeen to start).
Wizardry 6, 7, 8.
The Bard's Tale remastered trilogy (DO NOT bother with BT4).
Temple of Elemental Evil.
Legend of Grimrock II.
Thunderscape.

But that's only if you're ready for some dedicated dungeon crawling. The Wizardry trilogy is by far the strongest of the above in terms of story, but completing all three is not a small feat.

If you want something more story-focused, try Fallout 1+2, Dark Sun: Shattered Lands, Deus Ex (the first one), or VtM: Bloodlines.

 

[KushalaDaora]

Dragon Age Origins is pretty much my gateway to WRPG as JRPG player who find the more classic WRPG to be super overwhelming.

 

[Chromie]

I've played a lot of JRPGs, like Tales, Xenoblade, SMT, Final Fantasy... And I've been trying to get into WRPGs recently.

The games and series that I've been looking at:

- GreedFall
- Mass Effect
- Dragon Age
- Knights of the Old Republic
- Divinity: Original Sin
- Deus Ex

Any other recommendations, and would you recommend the ones that I've rattled off?

(Also, I didn't find either New Vegas, or The Witcher 3 interesting)

Click to shrink...

Play Knights of the Old Republic but PLEASE play Kotor 2. It's my favorite game ever especially with the restored content mod.

If you're willing to play older titles, Fallout 1 and 2 are great, I feel they hold up pretty well. Of course all those incredible infinity engine games. Baldur's Gate 2 at least since there's a Baldur's Gate 3 coming from Larian Studios.

 

[Mozendo]

What are looking to get into the most?
Do you care more about the story, the background lore, the gameplay, etc?

 

[wombleac]

Elex is awesome

 

[Firmament1]

Can you determine why you didn't like either F:NV or W3?

Click to shrink...

I didn't find the combat very interesting in either of them.

What are looking to get into the most?
Do you care more about the story, the background lore, the gameplay, etc?

Click to shrink...

Gameplay, and story. If it's worth anything, I'm also a big fan of action games like Ninja Gaiden.

 

[Schopenhauer]

If you are looking at mainly more modern games I would say adding Prey + Mooncrash, Legend of Grimrock II or Shadowrun: Dragonfall to your list would be a good idea.

Can't go wrong with Divinity OS I or II either, but pretty much everything you have listed is a decent choice.

 

[decoyplatypus]

Shadowrun: Dragonfall has as much crossover appeal as any RPG in the last decade. It's got the focus on story and characters that people often associate with jRPGs. It's got the open-ended character building people associate with wRPGs. Combat is solid, XCOM-lite stuff. And it doesn't wear out its welcome at 18-20 hours. If you don't like Dragonfall, it may be tricky to find a subset of wRPGs you will like.

 

[texhnolyze]

I didn't find the combat very interesting in either of them.

Gameplay, and story. If it's worth anything, I'm also a big fan of action games like Ninja Gaiden.

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So you're looking for WRPGs with good combat, especially actioney. Tbh, it's gonna be a very short list.

Let's see... Kingdom of Amalur? I wouldn't really recommend it as everything outside the combat is meh, but that's it I guess.

 

[Grimminski]

So no New Vegas, but is The Outer Worlds off the table? Its out on Gamepass Thursday night.

 

[Zaber]

Arcanum of Steamworks and Magicka Obscura
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
The Temple of Elemental Evil
Gothic 1 & 2
Fallout 1 & 2
Planescape: Torment
Baldur's Gate II

 

[Sanctuary]

I've played a lot of JRPGs, like Tales, Xenoblade, SMT, Final Fantasy... And I've been trying to get into WRPGs recently.

The games and series that I've been looking at:

- GreedFall
- Mass Effect
- Dragon Age
- Knights of the Old Republic
- Divinity: Original Sin
- Deus Ex

Click to shrink...

Of the games you've listed, start with Mass Effect, and if you manage to power through all of the jank, be prepared for one of the greatest of all time WRPG experiences with the followup. If it matters, ragdolling enemies off of cliffs, or into space with biotics was a hell of a lot of fun at least in the first game. You basically get to play as a "space wizard" in that game, and it was the first time I felt like I was actually playing a force user, despite having already finished the KOTOR games.

Divinity: OS is a good game in its own right, but the sequel, which has a stand alone story is a huge improvement in most ways, and if you can only play one of them, play the second.

I don't honestly know what to say about Deus Ex either. The original is a fantastic game, but you might consider it way too dated, especially compared to Human Revolution and Mankind Divided (both of which are worth playing).

As already mentioned, Baldur's Gate 2 is very much worth playing, but it does have somewhat of a steep learning curve if you aren't used to those kinds of games by now.

Also, I don't know what your preferences are as far as gameplay vs exposition goes, but a great many seem to want to espouse Torment as the greatest of all time RPG, but I just can't agree. It has a great story, but you are more or less reading a visual novel. I would say that Baldur's Gate 2 is simply the much better game in just about every way.

I didn't find the combat very interesting in either of them.


Gameplay, and story. If it's worth anything, I'm also a big fan of action games like Ninja Gaiden.

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Uh, there aren't really any "RPGs" that fit that bill TBH, and especially not one from a Western developer. The only games that I can think of that sound like that would be Nioh, Dragon's Dogma and basically all of the Souls games, but none of them are really "WPRGs". Hell, they are barely passable as "JRPGs".

If you did not like the combat in TW3 (I didn't either, and not because it was "too hard"), I don't think you'll like the combat in any WRPG that is in real-time.

 

[Ra]

I didn't find the combat very interesting in either of them.


Gameplay, and story. If it's worth anything, I'm also a big fan of action games like Ninja Gaiden.

Click to shrink...

Sounds like you should just go ahead and stat with the Mass Effect series first.

 

[7thFloor]

I didn't find the combat very interesting in either of them.


Gameplay, and story. If it's worth anything, I'm also a big fan of action games like Ninja Gaiden.

Click to shrink...

If you like strategic turn based combat, Divinity is very good at that. If you want something more actiony (though very very different from Ninja Gaiden), Diablo 2 or 3 might be to your liking if you like loot.

 

[Firmament1]

So no New Vegas, but is The Outer Worlds off the table? Its out on Gamepass Thursday night.

Click to shrink...

No, it isn't. But I don't know if it's good yet, so...

 

[Dan_P]

I've played a lot of JRPGs, like Tales, Xenoblade, SMT, Final Fantasy... And I've been trying to get into WRPGs recently.

The games and series that I've been looking at:

- GreedFall
- Mass Effect
- Dragon Age
- Knights of the Old Republic
- Divinity: Original Sin
- Deus Ex

Any other recommendations, and would you recommend the ones that I've rattled off?

(Also, I didn't find either New Vegas, or The Witcher 3 interesting)

Click to shrink...

Since you already have a list it's probably best to go with one of them since they already interest you. If you like jrpgs for their stories, the Bioware games are good starting points. They're not exactly the same thing (they're not anime like most jrpgs) but they combine mostly serious main stories with a lot of bad/cheesy writing in individual moments like the jrpgs you listed.

One thing I'd note that hasn't really been mentioned is that since most western rpgs have character creation for the main characters or entire parties, a lot of the fun in the games comes from making characters you like and watching them grow stronger over the course of the game. You'll have more fun if it's a game or setting where you're able to come up with good character ideas (not just stats but also having a headcanon around the character).

 

[mhayes86]

I've only played Dragon Age in your list, and I enjoyed Origins. I even enjoyed Inquisition for the most part.

If you're open to some older, isometric point and click games, I like to suggest the Infinity Engine games, specifically Baldur's Gate 2 and Planescape: Torment. The enhanced editions were recently ported to console, and have to say they were optimized for console really well. I'm currently playing them on Switch.

Brush up on some D&D 2e rules, and you'll be golden.

Skyrim is obviously a big one and easy enough, but I would also recommend Morrowind.

 

[johancruijff]

Darklands definitely

 

[SugarNoodles]

Divinity Original Sin is basically the best modern take on SRPG combat out there.

I'd add Dragon's Dogma to the list.