From the Lord of the Rings to the upcoming Dungeons and Dragons film set to release in March 2023, parties of adventurers have been gathering for loot and glory since the invention of the genre. Of course, being so heavily saturated in fantasy themes, the RPG genre of video games has also done its best to re-create this factor even for single-player adventures.

Participating in a dungeon crawl is one thing, but being able to lead a whole party of characters on a quest is a different experience altogether. From classic JRPGs to contemporary contributions in western gaming, some fantasy adventures just feel incomplete without a group of friends along for the ride.

For The King (79)

The player characters in For The King rest at a camp

This roguelike is what happens when the party can't get together for the weekly D&D session, as it is essentially a single-player tabletop game, complete with dice rolls and a gridded map. For The King checks all the boxes for a night of D20s, character sheets, and miniatures, but brings it into a fully-realized video game format.

Players will lead a trio of customizable adventures across a game board taking on quests and defeating evil bosses and minions for treasure and experience points. Its features and mechanics should be familiar to anyone who's ever rolled up a character sheet and followed the guidings of a Dungeon Master.

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen (81)

A female archer fires an arrow at a lion in Dragon's Dogma

If Dark Souls isn't the best fit, action-oriented RPG fans will want to pick up Dragons Dogma. At first glance, it might look like Capcom's attempt at a Skyrim clone, but there's something much deeper and richer going on with its world and lore.

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As for the party element, players not only get to customize their own adventurers but spiritual adventuring partners called Pawns. Since It's dangerous to go alone, Pawns are essential to questing and conquering giant monsters in this beautiful fantasy world. In the end, it's all the grandeur and epic scale of Lord of the Rings with the action of something like Elder Scrolls.

Dragon Age: Origins (91)

The party in Dragon Age Origins fighting a giant monster

If there's one company that has story-heavy RPGs down to a science, it's Bioware. The Dragon Age series is as rich in story and character development as they come, and Origins is where it all began. The party of adventurers the player can lead is as intricate and unique as the hero they choose to create.

As a member of the Gray Wardens, the player and their party of fellow adventurers set out across the realm to vanquish hordes of Darkspawn, gathering loot and weapons along the way. With archdemons, elves, and a gripping narrative, this is far more than the typical RPG experience.

Collection Of Mana (83)

Collection of Mana Cover features all the heroes

The Mana series is a bit of an odd duck in terms of the genre, but its core entries in the Collection of Mana do feature a unique take on the party-based RPG. Instead of having a turn-based mechanic, the party acts in more of a hack-and-slash fashion and can be operated by multiple players.

Secret of Mana was an RPG ahead of its time when it was released in the days of the SNES, and it's a series that evolves and improves with each new entry. It has the themes and visuals of Final Fantasy, but the familiar gameplay of The Legend of Zelda, making it a hybrid that deserves more attention.

Octopath Traveler (83)

Characters in Octopath Traveler posed on the cover art

For something more along the lines of a traditional JRPG, Octopath Traveler is equal parts classic and modern. Although it has more contemporary twists on combat, its use of traditional JRPG elements and visuals is what gives it a more familiar flavor. As for the party, players have eight different champions to collect, each with their own quests and story arc.

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Great things come in small packages, as the saying goes, and that can certainly be said of this 16-bit gem. With eight party members having eight different plotlines, they're much more developed than the standard fantasy followers.

Pillars Of Eternity (89)

Gameplay seen in Pillars of Eternity

Pillars of Eternity is a game made for a particular audience, namely those familiar with games of its breed like the Baldur's Gate series. However, it's a high-fantasy RPG dedicated to themes and motifs seen along the Sword Coast and in the deepest regions of the Forgotten Realms.

Players will set out on various quests and encounter different party members along the way, all with an isometric perspective. Elves, orcs, and other traditional Fantasy RPG elements are all par for the course in this game, though it might not be the best fit for beginners in the genre.

Final Fantasy VII (92)

Final Fantasy VII PS1 Boxart Cover shows the main title

The Final Fantasy series essentially invented the idea of a party-based RPG in video game form. Unlike its predecessors like Wizardry and Zork, it was one of the first RPG video games to provide fully visualized imagery to accompany a player's adventure. Although there are 15 games with several spinoffs outside the main series, it's the seventh entry that continues to have the most acclaim.

Cloud, Tifa, Yuffie, and all the rest have been some of the most recognizable figures in the franchise for decades, and the fanbase is very vocal about it. While the heroes of the crystals are exchanged for a bio-terrorist group, the epic sense remains across the series. Although it received a recent remake, it's the original that walked away with a higher rating.

Dragon Quest XIS (92)

Dragon Quest XI S Party spread in a combat stance

Next to the Final Fantasy series, Dragon Quest is one of the most successful franchises in the JRPG industry. Taking the framework set by Final Fantasy, but using more traditional, western fantasy elements like knights, wizards, and dragons, it's a gold standard of party-based RPGs.

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The series stretches back to the '80s, but its most recent core entry absolutely perfects the formula. Going bigger and bolder than previous entries, it has a colorful cast of adventurers, luscious environments, and a plot line that has elements of Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, it's truly a game for hardcore fantasy fans.

Divinity: Original Sin II (93)

A group of adventurers are seen in Divinity Original Sin 2

One of the most successful RPGs in recent years, Divinity: Original Sin II has quite the reputation behind it. Essentially taking a more perfected approach to things seen in games like Pillars of Eternity, deep and impressive barely begin to describe the experience that comes with this title.

So much detail is given to the game's lore, characters, environments, and even minuscule details that it's enough to make a Dungeon Master's head spin. No matter what cast a player chooses to fill their party with, their personalities are as vivid and vibrant as the realms of Rivellon.

Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows Of Amn (95)

A screenshot of the game Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn

The Baldur's Gate series comes from the minds behind Dragon Age with some assistance and inspiration from Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, and its second entry is the one that has the highest rating and some of the deepest content in terms of story and environment. With over 11 different characters of different races and classes, the player won't be experiencing the adventure alone.

Gorion's Ward must battle the forces of an evil wizard, and players will need all the help they can get in this epic adventure. All the fantasy elements of a classic D&D campaign sans the set of dice, fans of story-heavy RPGs and the famous tabletop game won't be disappointed.

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