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When it comes to the role-playing video game genre, most of us are familiar with World of Warcraft, Skyrim, Witcher series and many other heavyweights. Since everyone knows those games, let’s look at the lesser-known yet somewhat classic titles. These games bring their own blend of fun and excitement to the RPG genre.
Planescape: Torment
Here is a real cult role-playing game. Planescape: Torment is a title with a truly unique atmosphere, which draws inspiration from the world of Dungeons and Dragons and then breaks away from it with a dark and mysterious storyline. You play the Nameless-One (literally, the nameless), an immortal being awakened without any memory of his past. In the search for answers, this unusual protagonist will be helped by the most disparate companions, each with a unique story (and with often distinctive features).
Planescape: Torment is best remembered for its “unusual” gameplay. In fact, unlike traditional RPGs, most situations encourage the player to solve everything with diplomacy. In many cases, prudent dialogue choices allow you to get out of thorny problems very easily. The gameplay, therefore, focuses a lot on the resolution of the missions and their subplots, and the dialogues always play a central role, prompting the player to continually reflect on the events in progress.
Chrono Trigger
With this title, we go back a long way in time, going towards a great classic of the JRPG. Despite the years on the back, Chrono Trigger still remains a very valid title, which every fan of the genre should know and play.
The game is remembered above all for the great quality shown in every aspect. The Chrono Trigger fantasy epic is a memorable story that unfolds over the course of several journeys between the past and the future. Added to this are the multiple-choice choices, which actively modify part of the story and, by bringing other factors into play, even the ending itself.
As if this were not enough, we can also count among the advantages a combat system created really well, which is still very fun to play today. This little gem from the past is also available on mobile, so there’s no excuse not to play it. An excellent title from all points of view, which still holds up the weight of the years very well.
Divinity: Original Sin II
Here’s another RPG that helped bring the old-school incarnation of the genre back to life. Although with some differences that make everything more modern, Divinity: Original Sin II takes full hands from classic RPGs, bringing to the user extremely challenging and complex hardcore gameplay.
Again there are no aids or indicators whatsoever, and, just like in Pillars of Eternity, team composition is key, as a single hero can’t handle most of the fighting alone. In this case, however, the cooperation between group members extends to the interactions between skills. A spell can vary its effect based on the materials the environment is made of or based on other abilities cast by its companions. In practice, we can see a slight immersive sim streak which makes everything more tactical and profound. This is combined with the tactic of the classic turn-based combat system. An excellent combination of an old school and a modern RPG, as well as one of the most rewarding experiences of recent years.
Path of Exile
When discussing classic RPGs, Path of Exile doesn’t exactly come to mind. With its immersive gameplay and character building, it really sucks you in, and did I mention it’s free to play?
Path of Exile is heavily influenced by the Diablo series. It’s a multiplayer game that lets you interact with other places, but when out there questing and vanquishing monsters, it’s just you and your party. With a variety of currencies, Path of Exile has a strong item economy. It plays an important role in how your game progresses. You choose one of seven characters available in the game and equip them with gems and items you buy using the path of exile currency, and proceed in the game accordingly.
Some players have raised the issue that with microtransactions, the game is pay to win, but considering the fact that the gameplay is heavily instanced for every player. It does not make much of a difference.