Thanks to the incredible quality of the so-called "Soulsborne" series, Japanese company FromSoftware has fired itself into the forefront of the gaming industry as one of the most esteemed and beloved development studios. Consequently, the studio's upcoming release Elden Ring has become one of the industry's most highly anticipated games, with fans desperate to hear more about the product. FromSoftware's track record isn't the only reason why Elden Ring is so highly anticipated, as the game's story is being worked on by Game of Thrones writer George R.R. Martin.
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However, information about the upcoming release is few and far between. In the meantime, here are 10 action role-playing games that will hopefully tide players over until the fantasy game finally hits stores.
10 Dark Souls
Getting the most obvious suggestion out of the way first, the original Dark Souls picked up where Demon's Souls left off. It offers the same lack of hand-holding, punishing difficulty, and excellent enemy variety.
Dark Souls has one of the strongest first halves in all of gaming. The lead up to defeating Dragon Slayer Ornstein and Executioner Smough in Anor Londo is wonderfully well-constructed and ingeniously designed. There has been little news about how Elden Ring will play. However, it will likely take a great deal of inspiration from FromSoftware's masterpiece, Dark Souls.
9 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The first two Witcher games received a warm reception from both fans and critics, but neither of them compares to the booming success that was The Witcher 3. CD Projekt Red's action-RPG impressed gamers with its incredible visuals and well-crafted story, which players could heavily influence with their choices.
The game does have a few features that may deter fans of FromSoftware's Soulsborne games, such as the heavy-handed help and guidance in most quests. However, it's still worth checking out for its memorable narrative.
8 Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 2's gunfighting gameplay will, presumably, be vastly different from what Elden Ring provides. However, this BioWare is still worth playing due to its status as one of the best action-RPGs of all time.
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The game involves numerous combat sections and an overarching story of sci-fi politics and warfare. Yet, many believe that the true adventure is the personal relationships that players develop with their shipmates along their journey.
7 Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Kingdom Come: Deliverance was developed by Warhorse Studios and released in 2018 on Xbox One, PC, Amazon Luna, and PlayStation 4. The action-RPG takes place in the early 1400s, in an Imperial State of the Holy Roman Empire known as the Kingdom of Bohemia.
The open-world game initially failed to impress, exemplified by its Metascores that ranged between 68 and 76. However, many of the core complaints were aimed at the game's performance issues, which patches have since helped to rectify. Now, the game is considered among the best open-world RPGs on the market.
6 Assassin's Creed Odyssey
Ubisoft's flagship Assassin's Creed franchise took a noticeable shift in direction with 2017's Assassin's Creed Origins. The game implemented far more role-playing elements than prior games had, making Origins feel like a combination of previous Assassin's Creed games and the aforementioned Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
The shift in direction was well-received, as Origins became one of the series' most critically acclaimed entries. The game's sequel, Odyssey, took Origins' formula introduced and fine-tuned its weaker areas, making it the series' best entry since Black Flag.
5 Bloodborne
The second Soulsborne game to appear on this list, Bloodborne differentiated itself from the Dark Souls series with its more aggressive playstyle. Whereas Dark Souls' combat rewards patience and timing, Bloodborne encourages players to take the offense and defeat enemies as quickly as possible. Players must disallow enemies them from using shields and regaining health, by landing successful blows on enemies.
Moreover, the game set itself apart with its setting. Bloodborne exchanged Dark Souls' fantasy for gothic, Victorian-inspired environments.
4 Fallout: New Vegas
When Fallout: New Vegas was first announced, many players thought that the game would simply be a stop-gap adventure, capitalizing on Fallout 3's success until Fallout 4 was released. This was especially the case when it was announced that Bethesda wouldn't be developing the game themselves.
However, Fallout: New Vegas quickly became recognized as not just one of the best post-apocalyptic titles but also one of its generation's best RPGs. This is all thanks to the incredible level of freedom that Obsidian Entertainment implemented into the game.
3 Monster Hunter Rise
The Monster Hunter series has been a cornerstone of the action-RPG genre since the original Monster Hunter's release on the PlayStation 2 in 2004. The games do exactly what they say on the box by letting players hunt and battle fictional monsters.
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The most recent Monster Hunter game was released exclusively on the Nintendo Switch in March 2021, with a PC release coming at some point in 2022. Monster Hunter Rise doesn't try to reinvent the wheel and keeps the core gameplay that made its predecessor, Monster Hunter: World, a major commercial success.
2 Dragon Age: Inquisition
Dragon Age: Inquisition is the second game on this list that was published by Electronic Arts and developed by BioWare. However, 2014's Dragon Age: Inquisition's fantasy setting will likely be far closer to what Elden Ring provides than Mass Effect 2.
This fantasy RPG has a semi-open world broken up into multiple sections. The player can traverse these in haste with the help of Mounts. The game was well-received by critics, exemplified by its Metascores that ranged between 85 and 89.
1 Hades
Hades is a roguelike action-RPG that takes heavily incorporates Greek Mythology throughout its 20-hour main story. The game was developed and published by Supergiant Games, who previously released the critically acclaimed Pyre, an action-RPG that uniquely incorporates sporting gameplay.
Although Naughty Dog's The Last of Us Part II spent the end of 2020 sweeping up many end-of-year-awards, Hades was able to best the game for multiple accolades, including IGN's Game of the Year 2020 and Best Game at the 17th British Academy Games Awards.