It’s time to count down to the best RPG of 2025. 2025 was filled wall to wall with excellent games, with plenty of incredible RPGs depending on what you were looking for. From heavier action to turn-based tactics to monster catching, the genre really excelled across the board. From remakes to remasters, AAA to indie, 2025 was another fantastic year for RPGs.
As we count down to the best RPG of 2025, we have to keep some criteria in order. The game had to have released in 2025 and be widely playable to audiences, and not be in early access.
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The Best RPG of 2025
10. The Outer Worlds 2
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
The long-awaited sequel to Obsidian’s space satire lived up to expectations. A blend of familiar elements and new scenarios keeps The Outer Worlds 2 firmly planted in its world, without feeling like more of the same on the narrative side as players navigate the complexities of a new solar system that’s falling apart around them.
Making the world’s narrative far more personal is the level of choice players are given. Wildly different outcomes can play out for individual scenarios based on the paths you choose, giving players a strong sense of agency in this new space adventure. By utilizing everything from skill selections to previous choices and even environmental elements the player has discovered, the options for what to do in any situation vary wildly.
Complementing the strong storytelling is fun and frantic gameplay. A large variety of weapon choices and skills, both yours and your companion’s, make for fast and entertaining encounters. Plenty of different combat scenarios play out, creating a string of excitement that helps carry players between plot beats.
Contributed By Charles Hartford
9. Avowed
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
Obsidian began their phenomenal year with a landmark entry in their Pillars of Eternity series. A complex narrative, highlighted by difficult moral choices, keeps players engaged as they and their party members fight to save their world from magical threats and political strife.
While the story is strong, it is the gameplay that shines the brightest. The highly customizable equipment loadout that the game grants allows a level of flexibility and fun that sets a new standard for Obsidian RPGs. Allowing a pair of load outs to be prepped at all times empowers players to make full use of the multitude of fantastic combat options, without having to pause mid-combat to re-equip for an unexpected engagement type.
Contributed By Charles Hartford
8. Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
Developer: Square Enix
Publisher: Square Enix
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is as fantastic today as it was almost 30 years ago. The story is important and impactful, focusing on themes of class conflict, religious strife, and more. The newly added voice acting does a lot to breathe new life into characters that have stood the test of time. The combat is as engaging as ever, with each battlefield being a delicate balance of decision and movement.
The job system still absolutely rules, jumping between different jobs to build out characters exactly as the player needs them to be. Team building is deep and intricate, but also simple enough for someone who doesn’t play a ton of tactics games to enjoy. Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is a fantastic remaster.
7. Pokémon Legends: Z-A
Developer: Game Freak
Publisher: Nintendo
Pokémon Legends: Z-A finally shakes up the tried and true Pokémon formula, shifting away from the turn-based battles the series is known for. It’s a smart change, too, as Z-A is a weird little experiment that Nintendo should be doing much more of. The action combat completely changes the relationship the player has with their Pokémon, now thinking more about positioning and cool downs rather than just popping off the strongest type advantaged attack.
The story and characters are similarly great, making the narrative a more memorable one. Setting the entire experience in Lumiose City makes the game feel less of an adventure than before, but it also brings a sense of familiarity. A lot of what Z-A does is an excellent foundation for new installments to run with. Here’s hoping that happens.
6. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
Developer: Warhorse Studios
Publisher: Deep Silver
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is massive and unlike anything else around it. The medieval RPG pushes back at the player as much as it draws them in, where each choice, interaction, and fight feels as important as the last. Henry and the colorful cast around him are important, for sure, but it’s so many of the small moments that come from player choice that make this game so amazing. Do you fight your way through an encounter, try to talk through it, or wait for night to do some sneaking and thievery?
There are so many competing systems at work here that your experience is entirely yours. The combat takes a lot to learn, but once it clicks, each fight is electric and compelling, one wrong strike away from death. The world is massive with so much to find. The side quests are hilarious and some of the best in the genre for their ridiculousness alone. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 demands a lot from the player, but it’s well worth learning and diving into.
5. The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy
Developer: Too Kyo Games, Media.Vision
Publisher: Aniplex Inc
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is one of the most ambitious titles this year. With 100 different endings, there is a TON of game here. Each one is varied and feels different, focusing on a group of kids stuck in the midst of an apocalypse. Blending a visual novel and tactics gameplay, the collaboration between Kazutaka Kodaka (Danganronpa) and Kotaro Uchikoshi (Zero Escape) is a thrilling ride.
It may start slow, but once it picks up, going through the different pathways and seeing the endings is constantly thrilling. The combat tactics are a lot of fun too, with each character packing different combat kits and abilities. The cast is massive, with a favorite for everyone, and some crazy narrative swings that need to be seen. The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is a lot, but that’s precisely what it needs to be.
4. Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter
Developer: Nihon Falcom
Publisher: GungHo Online Entertainment
Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is the perfect example of a remake done right. Taking the first game in the long-running Trails series, one of the best RPG franchises, the remake creates the ideal entry point for new fans to check out. The graphics are gorgeous, keeping the same magic of the original’s beautiful sprite work. The story remains as gripping and excellent as ever, filled with memorable characters that are still relevant even today.
The combat updates here make the game flow even better than before, bringing in the action combat the series has adopted in recent entries without sacrificing the excellent turn-based combat. Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is excellent and well worth the adventure. The sequel is already on the way, thankfully, and you’ll want to play every game that follows.
3. Digimon Story: Time Stranger
Developer: Media.Vision
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment
Digimon Story: Time Stranger makes my lifelong Digimon-loving heart so happy. It’s a fantastic RPG that is easily the biggest and best of the series so far, with a fun time-traveling story and tight combat built around the lovable digital companions. Building your team of favorites and going to battle is a blast, especially as you digivolve and dedigivolve to see what new transformation is waiting around the corner.
It’s also the best the series has ever looked, with the massive adventure through the digital world packed with colorful and lively environments. The narrative is classic Digimon, with huge set pieces delicately balanced by heart and more mature subject matter that’s mostly handled with a careful hand. Digimon Story: Time Stranger is a big, ambitious RPG that, hopefully, is a bright sign of things to come for this long-running franchise.
2. Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
Developer: Jump Over The Age
Publisher: Fellow Traveler
The original Citizen Sleeper was a tight and lonely experience, one that isolated the player on a space station in the stars. The sequel, Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, opts for a bigger, more social experience without losing what made the original so special. This time, the galaxy is waiting as you set out to build a crew and desperately try to survive in a cold and hostile universe. The dice-based gameplay is as engaging as ever, as life and death come down to one roll at a time.
Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector grounds itself in character and narrative, with the cast being full of conflicting personalities and hidden pasts. Each choice is important and could impact not just the future of your crew, but the ship itself. More than a few times, I was stuck out in the dark of space trying to scrounge enough together to make it back home, a tense and difficult journey that stayed with me long after the credits rolled.
1. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Developer: Sandfall Interactive
Publisher: Kepler Interactive
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a generational experience. A masterclass of narrative, character, and combat all blending together to create not only the best RPG this year, but one of the best of all time. The narrative is dark, but tinged with hope, with plenty of fantastic twists and an ending that is still being talked about. The characters, with a stellar voice cast, are incredible and profound, each one instantly memorable.
Expedition 33 takes turn-based combat and makes it more engaging and accessible, intelligently weaving in dodge and parry mechanics that make each fight a dance with death. Some of those boss encounters still sit in my brain months later, not just for the encounter itself, but for the graphical wrapping. Expedition 33 is stunningly beautiful, with incredible music that perfectly accompanies every scene. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 deserves every accolade and so much more.
This has been one of the best years for the genre, and choosing the best RPG of 2025 was hard. With a new experience for anyone to find, each game could be someone’s new favorite. 2026 may be around the corner, but don’t sleep on any of the above.
