High Fantasy RPGs That Are Beautifully Written

It’s not exactly controversial to say that fantasy RPGs tend to have strong storytelling. Maybe it’s the freedom that writers have when creating new worlds, or the undeniable overlap between gamers and fantasy literature/movie fans, that makes this genre so ripe for powerful narratives.

Personally, I’m a bit of a sucker for what’s often called grand or high fantasy: stories that not only contain magical elements, but specifically adhere to certain tropes like sorcerers, dragons, medieval-coded empires, et cetera. If a story can somehow subvert these tropes, or diverge from them in an interesting and meaningful way, then that’s all the better. If your tastes are similar and you somehow don’t already know this, I have good news: there are a lot of video games out there that fit the aforementioned description.

The following is a smattering of what high fantasy in gaming has to offer, titles worthy of standing alongside seminal works like The Lord of the Rings.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Still CD Projekt Red’s Magnum Opus

I’m a pretty big fan of Cyberpunk 2077, but even I can admit that it doesn’t come close to the storytelling prowess of the original Witcher trilogy. By the time CD Projekt Red reached The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the studio had honed its depiction of Geralt of Rivia and the world he inhabits to a deadly point. Put a little more plainly, The Witcher 3 is as good as The Witcher games have ever been, narratively.

Of course, we can’t give all the credit to CD Projekt Red. The Witcher video games are based upon the novels and short stories of Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski. Sapkowski’s mature and gruesome spin on classic fables and fairy tales is combined with CDPR’s talent for adaptation to create what many consider to be the pinnacle of the open-world RPG genre, and the storytelling is an inextricable part of that.

Elden Ring

Miyazaki Plus George R.R. Martin Equals FromSoftware’s Best-Written Game

I’m sure I’ll draw some ire for calling Elden Ring FromSoftware’s best-written game, but I must speak the truth. In terms of breadth, detail, and originality, Elden Ring beats just about every other FromSoftware release in the narrative department, which is saying a lot. Indeed, even for a company renowned for telling great stories, Elden Ring‘s dark and psychedelic world is uniquely affecting, not to mention fun to delve into.

It helps that George R.R. Martin, author of A Song of Ice and Fire (AKA Game of Thrones), contributed greatly to the world-building in Elden Ring. Through this collaboration, the game manages to boast the complex political and familial themes of Martin’s work while still feeling like a quintessential FromSoft grotesquerie.

It’s A Metaphor, Everyone

The Persona franchise is fantastic, and majorly responsible for developer Atlus’ success in the West. More than anything, the growth of the teen-oriented franchise proved that the Shin Megami Tensei formula could be applied to different backdrops, and Metaphor: ReFantazio is a natural extension of that.

Metaphor: ReFantazio has everything you want in a Persona story and then some. Its plot twists and turns, and the player’s party members are absurdly lovable, but the game goes further than that. Through its high-fantasy ambitions, Metaphor manages to feel like Atlus’ most complete and comprehensively defined world yet.

Baldur’s Gate 3

A Story That Wriggles Into Your Brain

It’s been said many times before, but Baldur’s Gate 3 is perhaps the closest a video game has ever come to replicating that unmistakable experience of playing Dungeons and Dragons with your friends. By putting player freedom at the forefront through robust world mechanics, diverging story paths, and convoluted dialogue trees, Baldur’s Gate 3 winds up feeling boundless in a way few other games can match.

Remarkably, Larian Studios manages to weave a compelling tale in the face of this nearly unprecedented player agency. With sharp dialogue, a flawless understanding of D&D lore, and a mostly amoral plot revolving around Mindflayer Tadpoles, Baldur’s Gate 3‘s writing is able to withstand even the most ridiculous of player choices.

God Of War (2018)

More Than Just A Magical Version Of The Last Of Us

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: God of War has always had a good story. It didn’t suddenly become good in 2018. Since its first entry, the franchise has balanced grand mythological concepts with intimate, character-first storytelling, and the result was and still is a narratively compelling gaming staple. However, the 2018 reboot took things to the next level.

By slowing down a bit (both mechanically and narratively, mind), God of War 2018 is able to shine a brighter spotlight on Kratos’ psyche. Whereas the character was complex and tortured before, this mostly manifested in him screaming, killing, or, most likely, a combination of both. In 2018, Kratos is the sole guardian of his son Atreus, forcing him to build rather than destroy, which naturally leads to a more nuanced story overall.

Demon’s Souls

Humble Beginnings

I was tempted to put one of the Dark Souls games on this list, but I ultimately decided that while Dark Souls could very well be considered one of FromSoftware’s best stories, this is only through the lens of the entire trilogy (or at least DS1 and DS2). It’s my humble opinion that Demon’s Souls, Hidetaka Miyazaki’s first foray into game direction, has a more interesting and memorable story than any single Dark Souls game.

Keep in mind that this list is specifically about high fantasy games, so other FromSoft titles, namely Bloodborne and Sekiro, were not considered.

This might be mostly by virtue of Demon’s Souls being a one-off. The plight of Boletaria is certainly prototypical of what FromSoftware would do with Dark Souls, but its conclusion feels more final and satisfying since there was never a Demon’s Souls 2. Part and parcel with this is the fact that Demon’s Souls‘ lore is generally easier to wrap your head around than FromSoftware’s later, more cerebral works, which gives the classic game another special quality.

Final Fantasy 9

Putting The Fantasy Back In Final Fantasy

After two science-fiction/steampunk-oriented entries, Final Fantasy 9 returned the series to more magical ground. This entry still retains some genre fusion elements, such as airships, but it’s generally far more rooted in fantasy convention than its immediate predecessors. And this magic extends far beyond whatever Vivi cooks up.

There’s something about Final Fantasy 9 that makes it feel much more whimsical and playful than other entries in the series. Whether it’s the food-obsessed Qu or the eerily beautiful city of Treno, Final Fantasy 9 always has something creative or surprising up its sleeve. It’s not as brooding as something like Final Fantasy 8, but rather a lovely, storybook-esque adventure.

Dragon Age: Origins

Peak BioWare

Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been lambasted for its writing, and while a lot of the critiques leveled against it are valid, it had some pretty massive narrative shoes to fill. As many Dragon Age fans will eagerly tell you, the franchise’s story arguably peaked with its first entry, Dragon Age: Origins, which thrust players head-first into the world of Thedas. It was one of the first fantasy RPGs (video game, not tabletop) to really feel mature and sophisticated rather than childish or toothless.

Whether BioWare succeeded in fleshing out Thedas in subsequent entries is debatable, but the world’s introduction in Origins is a tour de force. It’s got political intrigue, well-thought-out fantasy races, a rich fictional history, and that classic BioWare dialogue to boot, making it a one-of-a-kind narrative-gaming experience.

Final Fantasy Tactics

Political And Battlefield Strategy

Despite being a spin-off with a gameplay formula that’s even less mainstream than traditional turn-based combat, Final Fantasy Tactics has one of the strongest narratives of any Final Fantasy release. Tactics‘ plot reflects its more methodical, slow-paced gameplay: its story is about the struggle for power, and the lengths people will go to obtain it, rather than anything else.

There’s also an undercurrent of darkness in Final Fantasy Tactics that isn’t often seen in other Final Fantasy titles. Characters will lie, steal, cheat, and kill in a decidedly mean-spirited manner, and happy endings for beloved characters are anything but assured. Released in 1997, during an era when the video game medium was still in its adolescence, Final Fantasy Tactics‘ story was definitely ahead of its time.