Summary
Roleplaying games are rooted in the world of text and text-based titles. Who knows where the genre would be today if it weren’t for the monolithic world of tabletop RPGs that came before it? If there’s anything that thebest RPGs have in common, it’s an excellent combination of narrative and worldbuilding to make for a highly engaging, highly immersive title.
Some games in particular, however, know how to use the written word to enhance their world. A significant area of overlap betweenbooks and video gamesis the power of prose to capture imaginations and get the player that much more connected to their game. For gamers who don’t mind a little bit of reading, here are some titles to watch out for.
Roadwardenis a title that, despite being full of life, leaves the player feeling lonely, in the best way possible. There’s a solid emphasis on the protagonist here, who is built from the ground up based on early player choices. This almost introspective tone is especially interesting considering the story itself is suited to a tale of grand adventure - the Roadwarden must brave the wilderness of the Peninsula to help foster settlements and towns and protect the innocent from the monsters that roam the land.
It parallels a lot of great RPGs that have afluid, dynamic worldthat constantly changes. InRoadwarden, text is utilized alongside some fantastic graphics with a fascinating amber tone. The descriptions of events, NPC dialogue, and combat interactions are all fantastic textual parts of this title, and the attention to the choices of the player puts it up there with some of the great branching RPGs available today.
Wildermythis one of those games that will stick with players for a long, long time. It’s not only an incredibly engaging strategic styled RPG, but it has such a novel system of character creation that does the impossible and combines the kind of attachment and depth found with pre-written characters alongside the freedom of creation and narrative choice that comes with customized characters. There area lot of intricate waysthat character personalities and events operate, but the best way to play this one is to simply dive in.
There is a powerful but understated sense of wonder to the writing in this game, with each event, and its hundreds of variations based on character personalities written so artfully it’s not uncommon to forget the world outside the game. Each campaign is framed like a mythical retelling, an epic that accounts for the band of adventurers fighting against some long-forgotten threat.
This unique text-based RPG is a masterwork in cyberpunk aesthetics and themes, perfect for fansof… well, Cyberpunk. There’s a tremendous amount of passion at work here, put into everything from the tabletop-inspired stats to the unique blend of colors and illustrations that makes up this game’s style, with a heavy emphasis on shadows, deep blacks, and bright reds. The text itself is novel-quality, reading like a mix of an enthusiastic DM’s worldbuilding with the pulp sci-fi classics of the 70s and 80s.
This is a game of hard choices, capitalist dystopias, and compelling characters. A perfect title for anyone looking to immerse themselves in a space-focused setting with no corners cut.
Suzerainuses text and narrative to get the player invested in the deep political machinations of a single nation and its fledgling democracy trying to find a place for itself in the world. The fictional nation of Sordland is, in theory, under the player’s control, but those looking for a power fantasy willhave to look elsewhere. An old, crypto-fascistic former president continues to manipulate parliament, the political right and left are trying to steer the country in two different directions, and through it all, the president must try to get a large enough coalition of allies to make his political ambition - a refined constitution - get passed into parliament.
There’s no other way to say it - this game is brutal. Fantastic, utterly compelling, an almost perfect articulation of what a good text-based RPG should be, yes. But also, brutal. There are no promises that things will work out, no promises that what one person tells you is the truth, but if the player does nothing but compromise and hedge bets, they’ll find a country with little to show for itself by the end of this stunning 900k word title.
The BAFTA-winningDisco Elysiumhas a level of quality that basically speaks for itself. It’s one of the greatest CRPGs of the 21st century, and with that comes a lot of stunningly written prose. Deciding how the protagonist makes his way in the world, what leanings he has politically and philosophically, and how this shapes the city around him, is one of the most engaging experiences to be found in a video game today.
Players would be doing themselves a disservice not getting into this gritty, surreal, highly compelling RPG with text that is written like a dream and worldbuilding that will leave people awestruck. Like other titles on this list, the text isn’t the only barrier to entry, as it’s quite a difficult title at times and requires solid attention to detail, but players who enjoy deep RPGs will not want to miss this one.
