Please recommend self-contained PC RPGS

July 11, 2004 12:47 PM

A bit of a companion to the MMORPG question, can you recommend a few good PC RPGs that are self-contained? I love MMORPGs, but just can't afford the monthly fees anymore. {More Inside}

I've already owned and played out Heroes of Might and Magic and Dungeon Siege (and its expansion.) I prefer fantasy-based games, and I like the graphics and playstyle of EverQuest and Dark Age of Camelot, if that helps narrow it down at all.

posted by headspace to sports, hobbies, & recreation (17 comments total)

Neverwinter Nights, and Morrowind.
posted by falconred at 1:03 PM on July 11, 2004

I don't know how picky you are about having the latest and greatest graphics, or what you've played already, but there are some older titles that are still good fun. Planescape: Torment and the Fallout games are up there, as are the Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights series. The latest incarnation of Wizardry (8?) looks pretty fun, too, but I haven't played it myself.

If you're not averse to more first-person type games, titles like System Shock or Deus Ex might be to your liking as well.

On preview: Morrowind, right. Many hours of time-suck there.
posted by majcher at 1:04 PM on July 11, 2004

I third the nomination for Morrowind. Buy one of the two expansion packs too - it comes with a fix to the journal UI that makes the game much easier to play.

If you're willing to go for older games, Baldur's Gate 2 and Planescape: Torment have some of the best writing of any computer game either. If you're not wedded to the fanatasy thing, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is also awesome.
posted by Nelson at 1:19 PM on July 11, 2004

I second the Fallout series. Fallout 2 monopolized my summer when it was released.
posted by mcsweetie at 1:27 PM on July 11, 2004

I'm playing through Fallout 2 right now and it's an amazing game. Sure the technology is dated, but the story is good, the world is very open-ended, and the scope is huge. That, and the BG series can all be gotten cheap these days.
posted by mkultra at 3:16 PM on July 11, 2004

Gothic is old, but fairly good. Not terribly challenging, but fun nonetheless. (Note: I rarely play RPGs.)
posted by uncleozzy at 4:06 PM on July 11, 2004

How many of the classics have you played? The single-player RPG is pretty much dead in any interesting form, ending more or less with the Fallout series (don't talk to me about Baldur's Gate; I hold it in low esteem). Since just about all you can get today are uninspiring Japanese-style RPGs, classics are where some of the best stories and play are to be found.

The Bard's Tale series is highly worthwhile, as is the functionally similar but slightly more up-to-date Might and Magic (pre-"Heroes of"), especially the later parts of the series.

My favorite of the classics, which has both excellent gameplay and a well-crafted story, is Legacy of the Ancients, but you'll need to bust out a C64 emulator to play the good version. It's well worth the hassle.

If you're willing to depart from fantasy genre, there is pretty much no better RPG than Wasteland, although Mars Saga is alright.

You might not get the flashy graphics or real-time combat in the old school classics, but you generally get a better game.
posted by majick at 4:09 PM on July 11, 2004

Either majick has not played Morrowind, or is wrong.

The Morrowind game of the year edition is 1) a steal, and 2) awesome.
posted by evinrude at 4:38 PM on July 11, 2004

I thought Wasteland and its sequels (the 2 fallout games) were absolutely fantastic. I wish they made a third one in the fallout series. And I wish Morrowind and some of these other games would run on a Mac. There don't seem to be any good, open-ended and large-world Mac scifi games out there.
posted by luriete at 5:45 PM on July 11, 2004

Thank you everybody for your suggestions! I went and bought Morrowind's Anniversary Edition, and next time I have free money, I'm going to try some of the others listed here. (As a note, the graphics don't have to be flashy, but I do like pretty spell effects, and older games are fantastic because they're more affordable.)
posted by headspace at 6:39 PM on July 11, 2004

ditto vote for everything nelson mentioned plus fallout 2.
posted by juv3nal at 2:10 AM on July 12, 2004

If you are willing to expand your view of RPG and if you haven't played it, Grim Fandango is one of the best adventure games of all time.
posted by Joey Michaels at 4:55 AM on July 12, 2004

nethack
posted by clockwork at 6:31 AM on July 12, 2004

The last Wizardry made was great. I sadly agree with everyone who says that RPGs are dead anymore.

I for one did not like Morrowind. The idea of a classless uber-character with full abilities does not appeal to me.

I miss the old Bard's Tale, original Ultimas, the Phantasy series, and my all-time favorite: Dungeon Master.

Any other suggestions?
posted by eas98 at 7:11 AM on July 12, 2004

If you like really old-school stuff, plunder the shareware catalog of Spiderweb Software for a while if you've overlooked it. There's a lot of fun exploring to do. My favorite one of theirs, conceptually, is Nethergate.

I agree with the suggestions above. Neverwinter Nights, in particular, has scads of single-player custom modules available for download, many of which are more entertaining than the campaign the game ships with (which is kind of slow and repetitive. But then, how did anybody manage to get through Bard's Tale II?)

Nethack and the various flavors of Angband will also suck out your time in large bloody chunks.
posted by furiousthought at 7:31 AM on July 12, 2004

Betrayal of Krondor is my favorite classic RPG. Also free.
posted by the fire you left me at 9:17 AM on July 12, 2004

Once you purchase Neverwinter Nights, you can play it online with other people - no extra cost.

If you're ever looking to adventure with a sorceress, just drop me a line. I'm always looking to play...
posted by MsVader at 9:59 AM on July 12, 2004