BEST RPG
Editor’s Note: There are no previous winners listed since this was not a category we voted on last year.
As a huge fan of RPGs myself, this is one of my favorite categories from our game awards this year. The RPG genre is a large one, full of many grand adventures. And there were quite a few to choose from this year from a variety of developers. These here are merely the top four us at oprainfall have decided were the very best from 2018. Continue on to find out which RPGs we loved the most and also a little bit about each one.
Octopath Traveler
NA Release Date: July 13th, 2018
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch
Review
Octopath was brought to us by Square Enix. It’s a retro styled JRPG with beautiful environments and artwork, interesting characters and an alluring soundtrack. The game follows the stories of eight different protagonists who are each on their own individual journeys and have their own reasons and goals for going off on these journeys. Games like this aren’t as common as they once were. I believe those of us at oprainfall who voted for Octopath Traveler really appreciated having a JRPG like this come out in 2018.
Dragon Quest XI
NA Release Date: September 4th, 2018
Platform(s): PS4, PC
Review
DQXI is a game Dragon Quest fans had been waiting a long time for. It’s the newest, large home console sized entry in the series and it shows. The game looks beautiful, the towns are larger and more interesting than ever before and it’s got a colorful cast of characters. Not to mention it has the traditional Dragon Quest soundtrack that fans have come to love. But in addition to that, Dragon Quest XI has added a handful of new features and general quality of life improvements more recent newcomers to the series, such as myself, found to make it a much more interesting game than past series entries. It’s made its way into our nominees not only because it’s a game that appeals to old and new fans alike, but also because it’s simply one of the most fun RPG adventures 2018 had to offer.
Torna ~ The Golden Country
NA Release Date: September 14th, 2018
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch
Xenoblade Chronicle 2’s Torna expansion was an even more enjoyable chunk of content added to an already large and great game. This time we got to experience for ourselves the history of XC2‘s world 500 years ago, the time period referenced many times in the main game. This time period is when all of the current day problems arose. Not only did we get to explore a completely different time period, we also finally got to explore the famed Torna titan and meet the various citizens who once lived there in peace back in the day.
The Longest 5 Minutes
NA Release Date: February 13th, 2018
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch, PS Vita, PC
Review
This RPG is a much more niche title brought to us by the developers Nippon Ichi Software and SYUPRO-DX. It’s an old school styled RPG with turn-based combat, where you find yourself following the story of Flash. He’s lost his memories and needs to regain them in order to defeat the Demon King. Much like Octopath Traveler, this is another retro styled RPG that you don’t see a ton of nowadays. We here at oprainfall found it to be a short, but very charming game. It has that retro 16-bit style and a fitting soundtrack which matches that. Because of its charm and being such an unexpected but enjoyable RPG, packed full of fun, it’s earned its spot in our top four.
And this year’s best RPG is….
Dragon Quest XI!
Ultimately, Dragon Quest XI has come out on top. This game is fantastic right from the start, it has an engaging and much more regularly present story than prior series entries. It’s also a very long game, but because you always feel like you’re working towards something, it doesn’t ever get old or become boring. The wonderful characters who move the story along help make it what it is. We here at oprainfall absolutely loved it and that is why it’s our best RPG of 2018.
Thanks to Brandon and Brodie for the awesome Featured Images
