Summary
Many people assume that RPGs are epic branching adventures with non-linear progression that adhere to the player’s choices throughout the game. This is true in many cases, but certainly not all of them.
Some players don’t mind linear video games, especially because they tend to offer tighter narrative beats than their more open-ended alternatives. In fact, some of the most notable games in the RPG genre tend toward more linear storylines. Players love the sense of progression and the variety of choices in these games without feeling likethe story can go down a particularly wild routethat they didn’t expect.
Spoiler Warning: these entries delve into some narrative spoilers for their respective games.
Neverwinter Nightsis one of the best classic CRPGsthat fans can get their hands on. Instead of focusing on player choice and branching narratives, the game aims to tell a tight, focused story set in theForgotten Realmsuniverse.
This makes for a tight and satisfying experience where players can complete numerous quests and help their party become stronger. It’s a classic role-playing experience that isn’t so open-ended that fans will get lost in the proceedings.
Pillars of Eternitywas one of the first modern games to trigger the CRPG revival. Some fans didn’t appreciate how linear the narrative could be, but the choices in the game were impactful enough to change certain events along the way.
Side quests could also break up the monotony of the main story while allowing players to become stronger. If players want to check out a simple and riveting CRPG that isn’t too open-ended, thenPillars of Eternityis the way to go.
Dark Messiah of Might and Magicis a fascinating game for fans who want to see how Arkane Studios evolved to become the modern pioneers of the immersive sim genre. The RPG elements in this game aren’t too overpowering, and the game’s true strengths lie in the combat system.
Slicing and dicing enemies up with powerful attacks and special moves makes for a great time. The gameplay is so riveting that most fans won’t mind that the story itself is rather linear and a bit generic.
Obsidian Entertainment’s work onSouth Park:The Stick of Truthmadethis greatSouth Parkgameinto one of the best video game adaptations of all time. It helped that Trey Parker and Matt Stone personally saw to it that this game’s humor and tone would be perfectly in line with the TV series.
The combat isn’t too challenging, and the story mostly follows a linear path with little variation in the lead-up to major events. This is not a negative at all, sinceThe Stick of Truth’s comedic narrative didn’t need branching paths to keep players engaged over the course of its ~12 hour campaign.
Out of the three mainlineWitchergames that CD Projekt Red has developed, most people agree that the first game is the most linear one of the lot. Players follow a chapter-based structure across several notable environments where they complete quests and make important choices.
That being said, the narrative is heavily impacted by the choices that Geralt makes along this journey. However, major story beats don’t change all that much, barring who Geralt allies with and how his actions influence other aspects of the game.
God of War’s reboot decided to integrate a number of RPG elements to let players enjoy a steady sense of progression throughout the more predominantly action-adventure title. This helped enhance the game’s tantalizing hack-and-slash combat and marked a major evolution for the series.
The biggest strength of this reboot was undoubtedly its mature story that helped humanize Kratos. The narrative is mostly linear, and the side quests aren’t so numerous that the linearity of this story is affected heavily by them, leaving them as more colorful dressing to the otherwise focused narrative of Kratos and his son’s journey through the Norse realms.
Despite the morality system and the numerous choices players can make intheMass Effectseries, the bulk of these experiences are largely linear. This is especially true in the case of the second game, which can’t take too many wild turns and derail the series' overarching story.
After being restored by Cerberus, Shepard must amass a team of experts and figure out a way to defeat the Collectors, newly introduced agents of the Reapers. It makes foran amazing narrative full of harrowing momentsthat feature meaningful choices, even if the broad strokes of the story don’t change all that much.
Deus Exis one of the best video games ever made, with this linear action RPG letting players control one of the most legendary no-nonsense protagonists of all time. JC Denton must take part in several missions and uncover conspiracies that threaten to uproot the world.
While players can approach gameplay situations in whatever manner they wish, the story is largely linear with only a few deviations along the way. Eventually, no matter what players do, they will always be placed on a path at the final level that lets them unlock one of three endings.
