Some things to take into consideration before chosing reading through:
A top list of any kind is difficult to do. By its nature its constrained, and things which deserve mention will inevitably get left out. For many things on the list, you could build a strong argument why it should replace some game on the list. Its best not to dwell on that. If we tried to make all worthy mentions fit, we would have a list much larger than now.
Then, there is a problem with lists which are not built on a single, well-defined and measured criteria. Lists such as this depend heavily on a mixture of various, uncomparable factors which get together to determine the placing. Sure, it might be possible to quantify and weight it, but, in the end, it is unnecessary, when the main criteria is, in the end, a personal preference.
The numbers don't mean much. From the first draft of the list, there were tons of changes to the placings. Some games change more than 5 places. Some from the lowest third of the list I could actually see in the top. That just says how close the ranks actually are, and that the ultimate place depends on a moment's judgement.
And, most importantly, time takes its toll. Inevitably, memories of some older games get hazy and mixed together. After years have passed, some series combine together and leave a single impression. That's why you'll see both series and single games - especially with the more recent games, you'll see them place individually. After all, the memories of them stand out much more, and its much easier to recall their individual qualities that differs them from the games from the same series.
With that said, agree or disagree, I hope you'll enjoy the:
Kobajagrande's Completely Subjective List of Top 15 Computer RPGs Done Right, Based on Utterly Oppinionated Criteria as to What is Cool About Computer RPGs.
15: Final Fantasy VII
Let me get one thing straight: I don't like FF. I think their gameplay is boring at best, and usually quite irritating. I never got amazed by their storylines. I think the way the plot develops in these games is quite lame. Character building mechanics are also quite horrible and irritating. I hate the fact opponents are just a random mess of acid hallucinations and what people who smokes a shitload of pot thought of as good ideas at the time. And I'm not a big fan of JRPGs as well. I like FF's AMVs and am always amazed by them, but... that's about it.
That said, I know there are a lot of people who actually like them. And its awesome to have something of a such global impact that overcomes national and cultural borders. Its a phenomen which deserves a mention. And even though its one of my least favorite Final Fantasies (meaning I consider it somewhere on the level of "less than shit"), it has been one of the major reasons why FF series has reached such global popularity. Thus, it has earned its place on the list.
14: Gold Box Games
Champions of Krynn. Curse of the Azure Bonds. Pools of Darkness. All in all, almost a dozen games SSI made in the late 80s/early 90s. These games were a blast back then. However, looking back, they haven't passed the test of time well. Even though I like classic games, I don't think I could get myself to play them again. Its not because of outdated graphics - I can still enjoy playing much older games - but the fact that the computer RPG industry has progressed so much with time - literary everything these games do, newer games do better. Which is not the fact with all games of those times - Al-Qadim is not much younger, and is still a fun game to play. However, the Gold Box games have one redeeming factor - their historical value. They are precisely what the RPG was at that time. No other game captured better the spirit of RPG games of those times - the storylines, the way of playing, everything. Thus, they deserve the place on the list thanks to the nostalgia and the fact that they belong to a museum.
13: Might & Magic VI/VII
Here it gets a bit tricky. These games have absolutely no outstanding qualities to mention. They are utterly mediocre, through and through. But still, at the time I played them, something clicked right. Was it the fact that class powers were interesting and were calling you to get them? Was it interesting way you'd graduate from class to class? Interesting quests? The fact that RPG games were not that interesting at the time? The fact that it was set in the world of HOMM3, the BEST GAME OF ALL TIME?? Who knows. But these games did something right, and even if I don't know what it was, I'll take some comfort that its designers don't know either, for they were unable to make any other decent M&M. Still, they did something right, so this is a nod to them. Thanks guys, it was fun playing it.
12: Deus Ex System Shock 2
Deus Ex was great. But to be honest, it would never have existed were it not for System Shock 2. The original System Shock was good, but the sequel was even better. These games showed that RPG elements can be successfuly mixed with other genres, and find their place even in the FPS games. Whenever you play a game that has some RPG elements, think of System Shock 2. Whenever you think how Deus Ex was great, remember System Shock 2. It was a game that made it all possible.
11. Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall
This game was just plain old awesome and overwhelming in its size. You were tossed into a foreign land, and you had to build your own life as you set on to accomplish your quest. You could have worked for the Mage Guild. You could have worked as a mercenary of the Fighter's Guild. You could have been a member of a temple of some god, or of some knightly order, or a thief, or even an assasin. Or you could become a wherewolf, or even vampire. All the different fractions, huge gameworld and possibilities contained simply blew away the fact that dungeons were irritating due to their size, or the obvious fact that most things were created through some random generator. The moment you would step out of that first dungeon, find yourself outside, and realize you don't really know where to go, you were captivated. Daggerfall was awesome, and Morrowind and Oblivion, as popular as they were, just never managed to get that feeling of being overwhelmed by the size right.
10. Knights of the Old Republic
It was Star Wars, and it was a GOOD Star Wars game - something that didn't happen since X-Wing: Alliance (some say Tie Fighter). AND, it was an RPG. All those things combined, how to not place it on the list?
9. Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
What is the first thing you do when you survive the crash of an airship that was just attacked by half-ogre aviation? You ignore the ramblings of a strangely-dressed guy, and, with skillful eyes, you start scanning the wreckage, picking up parts and combining them into a weapon.
Arcanum had it all. It had guns. It had magic. It had a world-shattering force to fight against. It had mysteries to be unraveled, strange opponents to confront. And it had guns. Non-linear, problems solvable through other means than combat, and an setting which combined elements of magic and technolgy so well that it would suck you in with every minute, Arcanum is really a rare gem of computer RPG design. It is a pitty it was never developed into a sequel, and that the whole game just faded out. It did not deserve such fate.
8. Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
KOTOR 2 is an unfinished mess of a game. Everywhere you turn, you see something unfinished. It is amazing to even think of that guy who ordered the game to be released: "You know that half of a game you have? Print it and send it to retailers".
So why the hell is it here? Because KOTOR is here as well. And, unfinished as it is, KOTOR 2 is still much better than the original was. Its storyline is better, the characters were better, its bad guys were better, the way you'd develop the NPCs was better, the way you'd create weapons was better... And actually, thanks to the modding community, mods were made that help the endgame not be such a complete mess and actually have some sense to it. It doesn't fix everything wrong with how unfinished it is, and that is a pitty. But it does show the potential for greatness the game had. If it was complete, KOTOR 2 would jump to a high place on this list. This way, it sadly stays somewhere in the middle, like its development status.
7. Diablo II
This game got onto this list just because it was a great game. The awesomeness of Diablo II comes just from the single factor: its a great game. It doesn't have any storyline, character interaction, or alternative problem solving. But, as you slash through the hordes of deamons, you don't care, because its just that good. Its so good that, if you walk into a bar and say "hey guys, lets play Diablo II", people will say "yeah, that's a great game, let's play it". And it will stay so, at least until the Diablo III comes out.
6. Baldur's Gate Planescape: Torment
Baldur's Gate should have been on this list. Its a game that, single-handedly revitalized RPG genre. Its a game that, single-handedly, got people to remember the fun they had playing AD&D. Hell, it was a game that got many into AD&D in the first place.
Still, like a sidkick who overshadows the main character, Planescape pushed Baldur's Gate off this list. Planescape took out all the slightly bad parts of Baldur's Gate and kept only the good ones. When people thought that BG was the as good an RPG as it could be, Nameless One and Mort showed that it could be even better. It never got to be as popular as the BG, but Planescape can rest easily on the sixth place of this list: you've done well, Planescape.
5. The Witcher
The youngest game on this list, The Witcher is awesome in different ways than most other RPGs. Where other RPGs concentrate on building characters, Witcher gives a simple system which provides an engaging, and fun gameplay. While other RPGs seek to immerse the player through storyline, The Witcher does it through excellent directing, and a great screenplay. The silent scene of the funeral at the beginning of the game is an example of great directing - the feeling of brotherhood and friendship among the witchers is portrayed so effectively that many film directors could learn from it. And the way screenplay is built, often basing the important character lines on seemingly unimportant remarks given before shows just how much care was put into the story aspect of this game.
Some examples:
First third of the game:
Guard: They say Witchers carry two swords, one for men, the other for monsters
Geralt: They are both for monsters
At the end of the game:
Main bad guy, as Geralt raises the silver sword to strike him down: but... That one's for monsters...
Geralt: *stab*
Prologue:
Evil guy Professor keeps two witchers at bay with his crossbow: They say Witchers are so skilled they can block bolts in flight. He shoots one of them: Just another legend...
Last third of the game:
Professor, as he is cornered by Geralt, suddenly fires a crossbow bolt at him, Geralt blocks it in flight as he approaches for the now inevitable kill: So it was true after all
Guard: They say Witchers carry two swords, one for men, the other for monsters
Geralt: They are both for monsters
At the end of the game:
Main bad guy, as Geralt raises the silver sword to strike him down: but... That one's for monsters...
Geralt: *stab*
Prologue:
Evil guy Professor keeps two witchers at bay with his crossbow: They say Witchers are so skilled they can block bolts in flight. He shoots one of them: Just another legend...
Last third of the game:
Professor, as he is cornered by Geralt, suddenly fires a crossbow bolt at him, Geralt blocks it in flight as he approaches for the now inevitable kill: So it was true after all
Actually, I'm just going to phone this one in. Its Fallout. Enough said.
3. Baldur's Gate II: Shadow of Amn
Speaking of phoning in, this one gets the same treatment. Everyone knows why BG2 should get a high place on any top RPG lists.
2. Darklands
I already said that, when making the list, games switched their places a lot of times. Well, that part of the list is done. When I begun the list, I already knew what the first two places were, and that didn't change until the end. And, probably, it won't ever change.
Because Darklands is one of those rare gems that transcends time itself. When it was first out, people thought it was ahead of its time. But now, when they look at it, they realize the game so good could only have been created in the golden age of computer games.
Darklands owes much to its setting. The game plays out in medieval Germany - the way a pesant of that time would imagine it - with evil robber knights, strange alchemists, priests calling upon the power of the saints, and of course, deamons straight from hell, the witches that worship them on their Black Sabbaths, and, of course, the devil-worshipping Knights Templar and their lord Baphomet. Oh, add Dragons ravaging countryside, Kobolds taking over the mines, and Wild Hunt being called upon you. The setting was so well-planned out that nothing really comes close to it.
And the open-ended gameplay was a blast. With no set goal, you'd begin on the side streets of some city, sleeping in the park by day, fighting thugs at night, slowly getting more wealthy, and becoming a local hero. When you finally get strong enough to venture out into the dangerous countryside, the real world would open in front of you, as you would explore the countrside for days, looking to see interesting random encounter would come out next - or maybe, what is in that castle, or village ahead? And as you do, you would find youself drawn more and more to your god given mission, of combating the great evil.
Trully a brilliant game, well designed in every single way. Even now, after years of playing it, I can still get a notebook to serve as logbook, create a party, arm myself with Essence of Grace and Arabian Fire, and head into the world of Darklands with the same vigour. Because, as the game says, in medieval Germany, reality is more horrifying than fantasy.
And...
Yo, Darklands, I'ma really happy for ya, and I'm gonna let you finish, but
1. The Quest For Glory Series
Is the best RPG of all time. OF ALL TIME!
There is not much to say about these games except they are a pure work of love. From the first moment, when your recent graduate of the Fameous Adventurer's Correspondence School for Heroes walks into Spielburg, you are set on the path of something rare and beautiful. And through the Arabic lands of Shapier, African Tarna, Slavic Mordavia, and Greek Silmaria, your character will grow as a man, make enemies that will hunt him, allies that will follow him, and friendships that will last for a lifetime. And when your hero of Spielburg, the Prince of Shapier, Hero of Tarna and Mordavia finally makes His Final Bow in the land of Silmaria, you will get that melancholic feeling that something great is over, mixed with the satisfaction of knowing that you've seen through something that was worth witnessing and which has, in a way, made you better for seeing it.
There are no words to explain how great these games were, and still are. The designers managed to find the essence heroic fantasy genre. Whether its comical, light-hearted first game, or the somber, serious fourth, every game leaves you with a warm feeling of satisfaction that you did something heroic, that you are a hero.
And that is what roleplaying is all about. Its about playing a role, and Quest For Glory series draw you in that role so well, that, when your Paladin is offered the choice at the end of the fifth game, it comes completely natural to you to refuse the throne.
And what comes after that, is probably the most rewarding ending of any game ever made.
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