10 Great Non-Japanese Role-Playing Games
-
Category: News ArchiveHits: 875
Dungeon Master (various retro platforms, now can be downloaded for PC and Mac here)
This one is a real blast from the past, but having just played through it again in the new PC version, it's still got some of the old magic left. The game starts off with you picking your team from a series of portraits, with each character having different strengths and weaknesses. You then venture into the maze-like dungeons, battling monsters, picking up better gear, and leveling up as you go along.
Fun fact: Nancy Holder, who wrote the story for this game, went on to write episodes for Buffy and Smallville.
Planescape: Torment (PC)
Planescape stands head and shoulders above the rest of the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons PC games out there. The storyline is enthralling, and the characters who join your team are all strongly individual, with their own side quests and personalities. You play as The Nameless One, an immortal who wakes up in a prison with amnesia. After that, things get really weird.