Summary
RPGsare often filled with interesting worlds, captivating dialogue, and an intricate combat system that has players coming back for more. The best RPGsin gaming historyprovide players with a great battle system, and whilst JRPGs are widely known as the superiors, Western developers are still impressing players with their iconic series and their combat.
Be it an assortment of epic abilities to destroy enemies or the player needing to use various strategies to deal with a foe, these Western RPG franchises have proven themselves to be consistently some of the best for players, as every game in the franchise has either improved upon its original combat or switched it up in a way that has still made the franchise enjoyable.
“Battle systems” goes beyond just combat and include stuff like player agency, customization, and build variety.
Fallout
Falloutis a franchise that many players are likely to have started fromFallout 3, though it shouldn’t be forgotten that before that moment the game had entirely different combat. The original two Western titles played similarly to many CRPGs as players clicked to attack a foe and the damage likelihood was rolled. While dated now, many players enjoyed the first two Fallout titles for the combat, especially as certain skills required a certain number of action points to do in stressing attacks.
However,Fallout 3saw the franchise change drastically and is what players now knowFalloutas. The commonfirst-person shootercombat with the occasional melee weapon is what Bethesda is rightfully known for and does perfectly throughout theFalloutfranchise, especially when combined with the evolved version of VATS fromFallout 3, which allowed players to stop time and aim at the weakest points of an enemy to see them quickly dealt with.
Diablo
With an assortment of abilities, classes, and intense combat,Diablois aWestern action RPGfranchise and is another consistent success for players. While some of the other elements ofDiablo 3weren’t up to the fan’s standards, players were still hooked to the combat that added action to the RPG.
The most recent Diablo title in the franchise,Diablo 4,continued the success of the RPG, with players being able to select between five classes that each have their own unique abilities and weaponry, allowing players to grind levels and create some of the most overpowered builds for each season of chaos.Diablohas only improved from its original roots which were heavily inspired by turn-based RPGs, with many players still having fond memories of taking on the dungeons of the original titles.
Borderlands
Borderlandsis a thrilling looter shooter franchise with RPG elements that combine interesting gunplay with an assortment of abilities for each character. Each game in the franchise has introduced the player to a variety of new Vault Hunters that players can build up in their own way through the various skill trees available to them.
The abilities available to players and the sorts of guns that are at hand have only improved across the various games in the franchise, with players giving high praise, especially for the combat inBorderlands 2,being able to hold a foe in place to litter them with bullets or having explosive shotguns that the player throws on a reload. While it’s possible to playBorderlandsalone, the game and its combat are made even better throughplaying with friendswho can take on the role of the other Vault Hunters in the game and therefore combine their abilities together.
Mass Effect
BioWare has made countless interesting RPG franchises for players to enjoy, with all of them having great and engaging combat that is easy to learn while still having a variety of skills for players to experiment with.Mass Effectis one of the best franchises from BioWare that has consistently had a great battle system that not only allows players to create synergies through their own skills, but also brings along two companions that have their own abilities.
While the player isn’t able to control these other companions like the originalDragon Agegames – another great franchise from BioWare – players can still tell their allies to go in for an attack, stay put, or retreat if the battle is too intense. Knowing how to use these tactics throughout the franchise can make intense battles a lot easier to deal with while making sure to keep cover when staying alive.
This recommendation mostly refers toOrigins,Odyssey, andValhalla.
Assassin’s Creedhas seen itself change slightly in recent years to be far more of an RPG title. However, while some players were not fond of this change, others have embraced it and have found that the combat ofAssassin’s Creedhas continued to be promising, even if some of the games are less likely toembrace the assassin lifestyle.
The original titles, which included Ezio, Edward Kenway, and many other ancestors, had players keeping to the shadows and taking out enemies secretively, while also having interesting melee combat when the player is caught, which encourages players to block attacks. SinceAssassin’s Creed: Origins,combat has become a far more prominent feature for players, as they can use an even larger assortment of weaponry to switch up their play style. This isn’t to say that the original combat and player base are completely lost to Ubisoft, asMiragewas another great Western RPG from the franchise that took players back to their assassin roots while making the combat work.
