Typically, video games have you play as one specific character throughout the whole story. Sometimes you get to make choices that affect how things unfold, but you’re still always experiencing the game as that same character.
Role-playing games, or RPGs, usually let you create your own character. This comes from their history in tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons, which are fun because you get to become a hero and experience an adventure while defining who that hero is.
For decades, video games have let players create their own characters. Sometimes this is just about how the character looks, but often it goes much deeper, allowing players to really customize their hero’s appearance and abilities.
Some role-playing games don’t make your choices feel impactful. The game world doesn’t change much based on what you do, or who your character is – things stay pretty much the same no matter your class, race, or alliances.
Many role-playing games excel at letting players create truly unique characters. This goes beyond just picking skills and abilities – it’s about making choices that directly impact the story and create a personal experience.
10. Divinity: Original Sin 2
Custom Characters Are Way Better Than The Red Prince
Larian Studios, the creators of the popular Dungeons & Dragons game, have been making role-playing games focused on player choice for many years. Before their latest success, Divinity: Original Sin 2 was their most well-known game, offering players a huge world to discover and challenging enemies to defeat.
Divinity: Original Sin 2 really stood out thanks to its fantastic character creation. You could pick from a variety of pre-made characters, each with a unique backstory and personality, or you could create a character entirely your own.
Divinity: Original Sin 2 featured a unique system of tags that shaped a character’s personality, influencing how the game world responded to them. This allowed players to create and experience the game as truly unique and eccentric heroes.
9. Neverwinter Nights 2
The Forgotten Realms Has Never Lacked For Heroes
Image Via Aspyr
For years, playing Neverwinter Nights 2 was difficult, and it survived thanks to dedicated fans who created modifications for the PC version. Thankfully, in 2025, a modern version of the game was released for both computers and consoles, letting a wider audience enjoy this beloved Dungeons & Dragons role-playing experience.
Neverwinter Nights 2 is built on the 3.5 edition of Dungeons & Dragons rules, which are very similar to how the game is played today. The original game gives players all the classic options – think elves, dwarves, paladins, and sorcerers. But the expansions really expand things, adding content from later D&D books and letting you create much more unusual groups of adventurers.
Although Neverwinter Nights 2 doesn’t offer as many ways to play an evil character as some newer RPGs, it still allows for significant character growth, particularly through relationships with your companions.
8. Dragon Age: Origins
Someone Needs To Stop The Darkspawn
Unlike many RPGs, Dragon Age: Origins doesn’t have pre-made characters. Instead, players choose a unique backstory – an “Origin” – that shapes the beginning of the game. This backstory determines how the story starts and ultimately leads to the player becoming a Warden, tasked with battling the invading Darkspawn.
The Origins system sometimes limited players by tying certain experiences to specific character types. For example, Mages were always required to face a dangerous trial in the Fade, and the Dwarven Noble origin was exclusively for dwarf characters.
Giving players defined roles was a big help in creating the game’s world, because each character’s backstory highlighted how unique the setting was compared to typical fantasy role-playing games.
7. Shadowrun Returns
No Room For Chooms On This Ride
Image Via Harebrained Schemes
Shadowrun is a fantastic tabletop role-playing game that doesn’t get the recognition it deserves, but thankfully, it’s inspired some great video games. The recent Shadowrun trilogy – beginning with Shadowrun Returns – is definitely worth playing.
Shadowrun Returns takes place in a futuristic, cyberpunk world, but it also includes classic fantasy elements like elves and orcs. This unique blend allows you to create characters that combine magic and technology, letting you play as anything from a spellcasting elf to a cybernetically-enhanced hacker.
As a Shadowrun fan, I think all three games are great, but if you’re new to the world, definitely start with Shadowrun Returns. It’s really meant to introduce you to everything. And it’s awesome – they even included a little nod to the original SNES Shadowrun game, which is a fun surprise if you ever got to play that classic!
6. Dragon Quest 9: Sentinels Of The Starry Skies
Square Enix Needs To Hurry Up And Remake This DS Classic
Dragon Quest games typically let you play as pre-defined characters. You can usually choose your character’s gender and select a job, which determines their abilities, but beyond that, there’s little customization.
Dragon Quest 9 was a groundbreaking game because it allowed players to create their own character. The story begins with a celestial being who is unexpectedly banished to the world below. Having lost their divine abilities, this fallen angel must learn to fight like a human to survive and find a way back to the heavens.
In Dragon Quest 9, players have a lot of control over their team – they don’t just create the main character, they build the entire party from scratch, customizing everything from how they look to their abilities and professions. Fans are hoping this deep level of character creation will be included if the game is ever remade.
5. Final Fantasy 14
The Warrior Of Light Comes In Many Forms
Final Fantasy 14 tells a story about a unique hero, the Warrior of Light, destined to defeat evil forces. However, because it’s an online game with many players, there are actually countless Warriors of Light running around! The game treats all the other players as helpful allies assisting your hero with difficult challenges.
In Final Fantasy 14, players can choose from a variety of races and classes, and customize their appearance with a huge selection of gear and mounts.
Although your decisions don’t drastically change the story in Final Fantasy 14, the game stands out for its incredible visual variety. It’s no surprise players love taking screenshots of their characters – the world of Eorzea is like a huge fashion show!
4. Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines
The Camarilla Welcomes People Embraced Within The Past Hour
Image Via White Wolf
In Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, you choose from seven different Clans, which function like character classes in other role-playing games, and also select a gender. Although the number of choices seems limited, very few games offer such distinct and varied gameplay experiences with each playthrough.
Choosing to play a Brujah, Toreador, or Ventrue is like selecting a standard, charismatic vampire, but the other clans offer very different experiences. Tremere vampires are essentially mages, wielding powerful spells that can be incredibly helpful, even today. Gangrel, on the other hand, are similar to werewolves, able to transform into monstrous forms.
The Nosferatu and Malkavians are the most distinct vampire clans. Nosferatu are monstrous in appearance and must remain hidden, creating a gameplay experience focused on stealth. Malkavians, on the other hand, are defined by their madness, which causes them to react to the world in unpredictable ways, offering a very different style of play.
3. Fallout: New Vegas
The Wasteland Doesn’t Need Character Classes
Image Via Obsidian
I love how the Fallout games do characters! They don’t make you pick a class like a warrior or a mage. Instead, everything about who your character is comes from how you play and what skills you improve. It’s not about one decision at the beginning – it’s all about what you do in the game that shapes your character.
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Creating a character skilled at everything is theoretically possible, but requires significant effort. A more practical approach is to focus on developing skills that are immediately helpful and then expand from there.
Fallout: New Vegas builds on the great character creation of Fallout 3 and introduces many different groups, each with their own stories and quests. This means your choices as a player have a much bigger impact on how the game unfolds.
2. Pathfinder: Wrath Of The Righteous
Try Being A Legend Instead Of A Hero
Okay, so I’m totally obsessed with Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous! It’s a fantasy RPG, like Dungeons & Dragons, but it’s way bigger and more epic. You don’t just play a hero, you become a legend. There’s this system called Mythic Paths that lets you gain incredible powers, going far beyond what a typical adventurer can do – we’re talking about becoming something truly powerful, not just another rat-slaying team!
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous begins as the main character arrives in the city of Kenabres just as it’s attacked by a demonic army. Soon after, they gain magical abilities that allow them to choose from various powerful paths – becoming an undead Lich, a celestial Angel, a mischievous Trickster, or even harnessing demonic powers for themselves.
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous offers a huge number of character classes and races to play as. But the addition of Mythic Paths really boosts how much you can replay the game, and the choices you make drastically alter the story’s direction.
1. Baldur’s Gate 3
All Tavs Are Beautiful To Their Creator
One of the biggest reasons people love Baldur’s Gate 3 is the incredible freedom you have when creating your character, and how the game changes based on your choices.
Baldur’s Gate 3 uses the familiar rules of Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition, but in a world where your decisions truly have an impact. Larian Studios has done an excellent job of creating many different ways to overcome challenges, making each playthrough feel fresh and unique – sometimes even a risky plan can work out with a bit of luck!
Baldur’s Gate 3 came out in 2023 and remains incredibly popular. A big reason for this is its high replayability – each playthrough feels unique, particularly if you choose to play as an evil character. Many consider its evil route to be one of the best ever created in a video game.
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2025-12-24 16:41