(s) Archive
2025-02-08
Winner: Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island Writeup by Ben Love One of the earliest true roguelikes before the genre was mainstream, the Shiren series finally received a new entry after a decade with The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island, the sixth game in the series and the first to see a… Read More »
Winner: Metaphor: ReFantazio Writeup by Des Miller Initially, it was easy to write off Metaphor: ReFantazio as just fantasy Persona. Yet within minutes of the game starting, Metaphor quickly proved itself as more than that. The narrative shows its teeth early on with the focus on classism and racism, the cast is incredibly strong with… Read More »
Winner: Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth) Writeup by Des Miller Weird. Awkward. Dorky. None of these are words I’d use to describe Cloud from 1997’s Final Fantasy VII, perhaps due to the original game’s lackluster localization. Yet in Final Fantasy VII Remake and its sequel, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, we get a further look… Read More »
2025-02-07
It’s been a monumental year for RPGs, if not one of the best ever. I say this to make clear that it’s no small feat there was a single frontrunner for me despite the steepest of competition. The RPG (of the Year) That Delivered on My Dreams It’s Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Like, oh my… Read More »
2024 was my year of remakes/remasters/re-releases. 1) Fate/stay night Remastered I could talk about how this lauded visual novel, which finally made its way outside of Japan, spawned a multimedia series with a fervent following. However, I would rather talk about mapo tofu. Fate/stay night Remastered is the game that introduced me to the deliciousness… Read More »
Game of the Year That Rewarded Team-Building Like No Other Unicorn Overlord is a masterpiece, a triumph, and a fantastic experience. Though not without flaws (the main plot is honestly kinda goofy), the flow of its battles, the unique traversing of the overworld, and the addictive gameplay loop of planning, strategizing, and organizing your units… Read More »
Games of the Year from 2024 1) Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes I loved my time with this game so much. I did have to adjust my expectations a little to get to that love though. I went in hoping for Suikoden II, which this game certainly is not. Yes, there are similarities, and big ones… Read More »
Let’s be honest: 2024 was one of the fullest, most complete years for RPGs in history. Whether you were looking at the AAA space (ahem, me), more independent offerings, or really anything between, there was a lot for everyone. That also means that I played several more games released this year than usual. While I… Read More »
Three Favorite 2024 RPGs Unicorn Overlord This incredible SRPG would’ve flown under my radar if not for the praise fellow RPGFan staff members kept heaping on it. I’m glad I listened, as Unicorn Overlord is a graphically stunning, entertainingly meaty adventure that the strategy RPG lover in me readily enjoyed. Dragon Age: The Veilguard There’s… Read More »
For me, it’s easily Metaphor: ReFantazio… To be frank, I was not particularly excited for Metaphor: ReFantazio even when it emerged from the ether after many quiet years following its announcement. I didn’t follow the pre-release cycle closely and only maintained the faintest interest because my friend, a hardcore Atlus fan, kept the game’s release… Read More »
Best Older RPG that I Played (For the First Time) in 2024: Linda³ Again Playing Linda³ for the first time today feels like NieR went back in time and had a child with EarthBound. This is the best way I’ve been able to convey what makes this PSX boundary-pusher such a special game. I’d heard… Read More »
So! About that 2024, huh? A year of difficult (yet fulfilling!) personal change for me was punctuated by one of the all-time best years in RPG history. As I made my way through treacherous personal waters, I found myself further away from the games I love so much until later into the year, when I… Read More »
The 2024 RPG I Played in 2024 Award: Unicorn Overlord The Ogre Battle series, particularly Person of Lordly Caliber, is a series that has moved and inspired me more than most. The notion of a similar game, given Vanillaware’s signature treatment, is quite a nice prospect. Unicorn Overlord does not quite manage to achieve the… Read More »
Welcome to RPGFan’s Games of the Year 2024! We realize this is coming a bit after the end of the year, but with many excellent releases in November and December, we wanted to give our staff the time to play and consider all games that came out last year. Today we present the first part… Read More »
Year-on-year, I seem to be getting busier and busier with my non-gaming pursuits. In 2024 I started a new job, alongside rehearsing for my 4th theatre show in a 12-month period, so you’d think I’d pick shorter games to play. Perhaps this is where I learn something about myself. Perhaps I am a masochist who… Read More »
I feel that 2024 was one of the strongest years for RPGs and puzzle adventure games in recent memory, and as a result I played way more new video games than I originally planned to, enough for a list of my ten favorite RPGs released in the calendar year. Missed Connections Black Myth: Wukong, Dragon’s… Read More »
Best Stylish Action RPG/Gambling Simulator: Wuthering Waves Punishing: Gray Raven is easily one of my favorite mobile games, so I was over the moon when an official PC client released. Once developer Kuro Games announced their follow-up to PGR and revealed it to be an open-world action RPG, I was initially underwhelmed. Everything looked like… Read More »
Top 3 RPGs That Held My Attention This Year SKALD: Against the Black Priory If you’d told me a year ago that my favorite gaming experience of the year would have been an Amiga-inspired retro RPG, I’d have likely shot a pessimistic glance. But SKALD was so draped in dark atmospherics, both in its detailed… Read More »
It’s been a great year for RPGs, and I’m always trying to keep up with the great titles of this year, last year, the previous year, and so on. Last year, I hadn’t beaten Baldur’s Gate 3, and here I am, a year later, and I still haven’t beaten it! Anyway, that was last year.… Read More »
Best 2024 Game (That I Played): Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth In a year full of extraordinary RPGs, I’m unashamed to say that I’m sticking with my comfort food: the Yakuza series. Why? Because Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is simply some of the tastiest video game comfort food you could find outside of the… Read More »
Bat Dad Is Best Dad Award! Metaphor: ReFantazio was easily the best RPG this year. No doubt in my mind. It had a fresh new setting, took the long and sometimes stale Persona gameplay loop and streamlined it, and combined a job system with the Press Turn system to make for amazing top-tier turn-based combat.… Read More »
2025-02-06
In roleplaying games, the most popular roles are the usual suspects: warriors, rogues, wizards, or clerics. Most playable characters are a variant of the typical RPG trinity of tank, DPS, and healers. Unfortunately, adventuring isn’t free. For a character or party to advance, they need not just experience, but better gear. That gear costs money… Read More »
Rob White Final Fantasy IX is definitely up there as one of the entries of the series I’ve played the most. Everything about this game says comfort, nostalgia and adventure to me, and I can’t see myself ever tiring of it. Gaia (and Terra) is a land unlike any other in Final Fantasy, an aesthetic… Read More »
2025-01-18
Freedom Wars does nearly everything right thematically. From the first moments, you’re slapped with a million-year sentence for a mysterious crime you allegedly committed. You must now live out your sentence in a post-apocalyptic penitentiary known simply as The Panopticon. A notice explodes onto the PS Vita’s screen explaining this fact, with a space in… Read More »
2025-01-15
I had a great time with the Demonschool demo over the summer, so it was a pleasure to interview the school’s principal game’s creative director (and founder of Necrosoft Games) Brandon Sheffield. We conducted the Q&A over email, where Sheffield revealed some fun and intriguing insights into the design concepts and aesthetic inspirations that informed… Read More »
