RPGs That Are Still Hard To Live Up To

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Completing an RPG, whether it’s a quick five-hour game or a lengthy eighty-hour one, is usually a rewarding experience, though it depends on the specific game. For example, Undertale can be finished in around five hours, whereas Persona 5 requires about eighty hours to complete, and both games are excellent in their own ways. Players often feel a sense of wonder after finishing, and may simply put down their controllers and enjoy the moment.

Do Undertale and Persona 5 represent the pinnacle of RPGs, setting a standard that future games may struggle to reach? The following RPGs, both from Eastern and Western developers, demonstrate just how impactful and influential they’ve been. Considering when these games were first released, they established a remarkably high standard, and it will be difficult for any game to surpass their cultural significance. This list highlights classic titles that are at least ten years old and have left a lasting impression on the gaming world.

The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim

No One Can Beat A Dragon

Few release dates are as memorable as 11/11/11, but the game launched on that day is truly iconic. The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim rapidly became a cultural phenomenon, with nearly everyone purchasing and enthusiastically playing it.

It truly felt like the first time you could freely explore a vast world, despite many similar games existing before and since. While others have tried to create something equally unique and expansive, the diverse locations, weapons, and magical abilities make Skyrim incredibly memorable. Adding dragons and dragon-related powers further set it apart, and it will be a significant challenge for the next The Elder Scrolls game to surpass it.

Final Fantasy 7

A Console Defining Experience

Final Fantasy 7 was a total game-changer, honestly. It’s the game that really got me and a ton of other people into JRPGs. It wasn’t just a good game, it basically *defined* the PlayStation 1, helped it become huge, and that’s why it’s gotten so many sequels and spinoffs – way more than the other Final Fantasy titles, in my opinion.

Final Fantasy 7 arrived at the perfect moment, boasting impressive graphics for its time, a compelling and mature storyline, a flexible Materia system, and a wealth of other features. Later games in the Final Fantasy series have also been excellent, ranking among the top JRPGs available, but Final Fantasy 7 remains a standout title, surpassing all other JRPGs, no matter the series.

Undertale

THE Indie RPG

Undertale is a role-playing game created independently, and it drew inspiration from classic titles like Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars and EarthBound. Despite this, it managed to become a significant part of modern internet culture, especially with how easily games are shared today.

The game seamlessly blends everything – the art style, humor, and music – with a distinctive combat system. Instead of typical turn-based battles, players are encouraged to resolve conflicts through conversation. Many indie RPGs have attempted to be as innovative and unconventional as Undertale, even its creator, Toby Fox, but so far, none have had quite the same impact.

Bloodborne

Many Soulslikes Later

With Demon’s Souls, FromSoftware revolutionized action RPGs and created a hugely influential game, though they hadn’t quite reached their peak. Bloodborne is often seen as the game where FromSoftware truly mastered its unique style, adding a dark, gothic atmosphere to everything.

It felt captivating, reminiscent of an H.P. Lovecraft story, and being able to switch weapons made the combat even more exciting and fast-paced than in the Souls series. Bloodborne has almost become a legendary game, primarily known by PlayStation players, as it was released exclusively on the PS4, which disappointed many FromSoftware and Soulslike fans.

Pokemon Gold & Silver

Two Campaigns In One

Pokemon Gold and Pokemon Silver were a massive success, managing to make the already popular Pokemon series even more beloved. These games expanded the world with more Pokemon to catch, introduced innovative features like in-game phones for communication, and even included a dynamic day-night cycle. Essentially, they delivered everything you’d want in a sequel to a role-playing game, and went above and beyond expectations.

That added boost of excitement meant returning to the very beginning – the Kanto region – and experiencing a completely new, full-length adventure there. No Pokemon game with extra content has ever done something like that before. Considering how common DLC is now, it feels unlikely that a company would put in that much extra effort again.

Diablo 2

A New Millennium Of Evil

Diablo 2 was a landmark role-playing game at the start of the 2000s. While the original Diablo was a hit, Diablo 2 is considered the high point of the franchise. It featured more developed character classes, a wider variety of items to find, and a much larger game world that grew over time with updates and expansions from Blizzard.

This doesn’t mean the later games were poor quality or inferior. Diablo 4, especially, was very enjoyable, and so was Diablo 2: Resurrected, which was a remastered version of the second game. It’s simply that PC gamers in the 2000s strongly identified with Diablo 2. If someone didn’t play Diablo 2, it felt like they didn’t even *have* a computer-it was as simple as that.

Kingdom Hearts

The Wildest Crossover Of All Time?

Video game crossovers are often strange, but they generally involve partnerships between different game series. Kingdom Hearts stood out because it uniquely combined the talents of Final Fantasy’s developers, Squaresoft, with the massive entertainment company, Disney.

The idea of characters from Final Fantasy meeting well-known Disney figures – Mickey Mouse, Aladdin, Ariel, Maleficent, and many more – seemed incredibly far-fetched. Luckily, the collaboration proved successful for both companies, resulting in a uniquely popular action RPG for the PS2. That feeling of delightful surprise, however, is something we can’t recreate.

Chrono Trigger

The Dream Team Game

Chrono Trigger was created by a team of incredibly talented developers who were leaders in the gaming industry during the 1980s and 1990s. Back in 1995, it was unusual to see competitors collaborating, but they successfully combined their skills to make a groundbreaking role-playing game centered around time travel-a game that was remarkably innovative for its time.

The artwork was created by Akira Toriyama, known for Dragon Ball, while Hironobu Sakaguchi, famous for Final Fantasy, designed how the game plays. Yuji Hori, who worked on Dragon Quest, contributed to the writing, and many other talented individuals were involved. This incredible collaboration is a major reason why Chrono Trigger is so highly praised-it’s considered a groundbreaking retro game that remains unmatched.

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2025-09-30 09:35