Which CRPG offers the best sense of adventure?

[curds]

I'm in the mood for a classic-style, epic fantasy romp. I assume most people here have read The Hobbit, LotR or The Wheel of Time.

Looking for stuff like, but not limited to, varied, exotic locales, lots of (preferably non-linear) overworld exploration, meeting colourful characters along the way, party management, etc, etc.

A couple of good ones off the top of my head:

Baldur's Gate. Not a huge fan of the game but I will say it nails the classic fantasy adventure vibe. Same goes for BG2, to a lesser extent, and Icewind Dale of course.

Wizardry 8. Big party of 8 heroes, quips and banter from the party, pulpy sci-fi fantasy tone, lots of trekking down the forested roads of a big, open fantasy planet, plenty of colourful characters to meet on the way.

Fallout 2. Starting off in your small tribe and setting out to explore a huge post-apocalyptic landscape, again plenty of colourful characters, situations and locales to come across.

I haven't played them, but I imagine Realms of Arkania and early M&M might fit the bill.

Can anyone help me satisfy my craving?

 

[sebas]

- Underrail is a shoe-in here, amazing immersion and length
- Dragon Quest XI I also really enjoyed
- The Witcher games played in a row really nail the story arc and slowly spoil you with the awesome worldbuilding
- and while surely I'll get roasted for this, Dragon Age: Inquisition

 

[Fowyr]

Looking for stuff like, but not limited to, varied, exotic locales, lots of (preferably non-linear) overworld exploration, meeting colourful characters along the way, party management, etc, etc.

Grimoire, of course.
Wizardry 7.
Albion has interesting setting and great feeling of adventure.
Anvil of Dawn and The Summoning have this "one man against the world" feeling.

early M&M might fit the bill.

Yes, play M&M1 or M&M2.

 

[curds]

- Dragon Quest XI really gave me that vibe

I played a decent amount of DQ8 this year on a chipped PS2 my buddy gave me. It does have the vibe, for sure, but the gameplay was just too repetitive and the random encounters too relentless.

- The Witcher games played in a row really nail the story arc and slowly spoil you with the awesome worldbuilding

I just finished playing through the series. I think having a party, whether PCs or NPC companions, is important to me in this case. Also the first Witcher had a relatively low-stakes plot and was set almost entirely in one city, so again not exactly what I'm after.

- and while surely I'll get roasted for this, Dragon Age: Inquisition

Never played the sequels, but Origins does the sense of adventure thing really well. Actually, it seems to be one of the things Bioware is actually very good at. KOTOR did it well, too.

 

[Gaznak]

Might & Magic 3-5, Wizardry 6-8, Wizards & Warriors, Darklands, Ultima 4-6 and 7-8, Daggerfall, Arcanum, Eschalon 1-3, Geneforge 1-5, Inquisitor, NWN 1-2 - there are dozens of them.

 

[curds]

Grimoire, of course.
Wizardry 7.

Was expecting to see these pop up. Played a lot of 8, maybe time to go back to 7.

Yes, play M&M1 or M&M2.

Leaning towards MM2, I remember seeing screenshots of it as a kid in a gaming magazine, and even those filled my heart with adventure.

 

[Gaznak]

Actually, it seems to be one of the things Bioware is actually very good at.

Then Jade Empire might go for you.

 

[perfectslumbers]

Kingmaker

 

[curds]

Daggerfall, Arcanum, Eschalon 1-3, Geneforge 1-5, Inquisitor, NWN 1-2

Played a lot of Daggerfall and Arcanum already, Eschalon didn't impress me but maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance.

Finished Geneforge 1, that was a great one, awesome sense of mystery and exploration.

NWN1 I managed to complete, but I found it one of the most forgettable RPGs I've played. All I remember is ancient lizardmen. NWN2 I hate, can't stomach even the first village. Never played MotB though, maybe I should just skip to that.

 

[perfectslumbers]

Never played MotB though, maybe I should just skip to that.

MOTB is a very serious and dark story, not a fun fantasy romp at all really.

 

[curds]

Then Jade Empire might go for you.

Never gave it a second glance since it looked like Bioware going even more popamole than they already were. How is it?

 

[Fowyr]

Leaning towards MM2, I remember seeing screenshots of it as a kid in a gaming magazine, and even those filled my heart with adventure.

Good choice. Just keep in mind that M&M2 ultimately is much more high-level than down-to-earth M&M1. So you can find or enchant yourself ridiculous things like Longsword +78.

Was expecting to see these pop up. Played a lot of 8, maybe time to go back to 7.

Yep. Wiz7 is a best Wizardry. Wiz8 lost too much.

 

[curds]

Kingmaker

Played it this last year, got filtered by the kingdom management and my own dumb decision to start on a harder difficulty level. Planning to give it another crack.

 

[Bruma Hobo]

Ultima V. Quest of the Avatar has the better plot, but Warriors of Destiny feels epic like no other game.

 

[Butter]

Wiz 7 and Grimoire are unmatched.

 

[curds]

Ultima V. Quest of the Avatar has the better plot, but Warriors of Destiny feels epic like no other game.

I played Quest of the Avatar, combat was so awful I was put off. Is it any better in U5? I'm aware the Ultima games are not combat oriented, but U4 was just abysmal in that department.

 

[Bruma Hobo]

I played Quest of the Avatar, combat was so awful I was put off. Is it any better in U5? I'm aware the Ultima games are not combat oriented, but U4 was just abysmal in that department.

Combat in Ultima V is by far the best in the series, it's in a whole different league.

 

[Comte]

Give Ultima 7 part 1 and 2 a try.

 

[Tihskael]

Darklands

 

[Bruma Hobo]

There's also Expeditions: Conquistador, if you don't mind the very different flavor.

Baldur's Gate. Not a huge fan of the game but I will say it nails the classic fantasy adventure vibe. Same goes for BG2, to a lesser extent, and Icewind Dale of course.

Don't you think that Pool of Radiance does it much better than Baldur's Gate? Just curious.

 

[Ysaye]

I'm in the mood for a classic-style, epic fantasy romp. I assume most people here have read The Hobbit, LotR or The Wheel of Time.

Looking for stuff like, but not limited to, varied, exotic locales, lots of (preferably non-linear) overworld exploration, meeting colourful characters along the way, party management, etc, etc.

A couple of good ones off the top of my head:

Baldur's Gate. Not a huge fan of the game but I will say it nails the classic fantasy adventure vibe. Same goes for BG2, to a lesser extent, and Icewind Dale of course.

Wizardry 8. Big party of 8 heroes, quips and banter from the party, pulpy sci-fi fantasy tone, lots of trekking down the forested roads of a big, open fantasy planet, plenty of colourful characters to meet on the way.

Fallout 2. Starting off in your small tribe and setting out to explore a huge post-apocalyptic landscape, again plenty of colourful characters, situations and locales to come across.

I haven't played them, but I imagine Realms of Arkania and early M&M might fit the bill.

Can anyone help me satisfy my craving?

• Ultima 7 (either Black Gate or Serpent Isle) - Serpent Isle is a bit more linear and neither is super-great party management wise, but if you just want to explore a well developed world I like both of those games.
• Might and Magic World of Xeen or Might and Magic 6 if you are fine with doing away with colourful characters.
• If you want to put emphasis on party management the Realms of Arkania Star Trail, but that is a little less non-linear than the above two, but has everything else in spades.
• Betrayal at Krondor - only there party members and not totally non-linear but there is still a huge amount of freedom to go anywhere in the world.

 

[curds]

Don't you think that Pool of Radiance does it much better than Baldur's Gate? Just curious.

Pool of Radiance has better gameplay (disregarding QoL stuff - it gets a pass for that for being so old). I think going purely by "sense of adventure" BG did it better. Every little detail in BG worked towards that vibe, from the music to the UI, to narration.

My examples were not meant to be exhaustive or the best, btw, just a few names off the top of my head.

 

[curds]

Might and Magic 6 if you are fine with doing away with colourful characters.

MM6 has a great vibe, but the combat weirded me out, felt like I was playing Serious Sam or something.

That said, I'll often come back to games that didn't gel with me in the past and end up loving them.

MM2, 3, or Xeen are pretty tempting to me right now.

 

[Ulysa]

Ah yes, the best of game feelings. Agreed with BG and Fallout.
I think PoE2 has a good sense of adventure, once you forget about the main quest. I actually liked the pirate theme with the shanties and all. There are a lot of fun encounters in beautiful settings and you have a lot of freedom to move around.
Arcanum and Morrowind to name others.

 

[curds]

Ah yes, the best of game feelings. Agreed with BG and Fallout.
I think PoE2 has a good sense of adventure, once you forget about the main quest. I actually liked the pirate theme with the shanties and all. There are a lot of fun encounters in beautiful settings and you have a lot of freedom to move around.
Arcanum and Morrowind to name others.

PoE1 failed to draw me in, I was planning to try it again soon, though.
Played both Arcanum and Morrowind to death already.