author: Michael Pajda
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. The most popular classic single-player games 2021
Table of Contents
- Age: almost 14 years
- Genre: Open-world RPG
- Peak number of concurrent players last month: 1918
The Elder Scrolls series is one of the greatest phenomenons when it comes to games that aren't perfect, but make up for it with something undefinable, like a game's soul. Part four was definitely a high point in the history of TES, and a genre-defining moment for the entire RPG segment. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion stood up to its heritage, and laid the foundations for the fantastic Skyrim – a game that's still shining years after release, though fans have a hard time deciding which TES was best: Morrowind, Oblivion, or Skyrim.
The reason that Oblivion – almost 11 years after its release – is still being played by an average of a thousand players at any given moment (significantly less than Skyrim, but also a lot more than Morrowind) is due to the prolific modding scene, which is constantly improving the game. We typically can get graphical revamps, which bring the visuals of this game up to date – and even without them, the game hasn't aged that badly. We can also find modifications that introduce new items and quests, and even change various mechanics of the game. You just have to know how to install them...
WHERE'S SKYRIM?
Yes, Skyrim is still being played by a ton of people (over 10,000 at peak recently), and it is an RPG that's over 8 years old. However, we did not describe it in the listing because we felt it was too obvious a choice. We all know people who still play it all the time, right?
Undertale
- Age: almost 5 years
- Genre: it's a one-of-a-kind game
- Peak number of concurrent players last month: 1754
Don't be fooled by appearances – just because Undertale (released in late 2015) looks at first glance like a production created in RPG Maker*, doesn't make it an unworthy title. On the contrary – it's worth playing, especially if you're fed up with trite motifs and are looking for something fresh, with the proverbial "guts." Or even two – because creating and then publishing such a game must have taken some real courage. Fortunately, it's an indie game, developed by one man.
* Undertale was developed on the GameMaker Studio engine.
In Undertale, we play Frisk, a gender-unspecified kid who kills monsters in battles (the combat gameplay is completely different from anything you've seen so far, and it's pretty awesome by the way) or... interacts with them.
Undertale is a gaming experience that's best experienced yourself. Passing through subsequent locations, the protagonist is immersed up to his neck in a thick slurry of good humor – the production surprises almost every second step with accurate jokes about role-playing games. At the same time, the story presented here is mature, surprising, brutal, and emotionally stirring. We will say no more.
We'll just add that the game is still being updated (the last "patch" came out in October 2019), and often discounted, so you can even catch it for around $4. Besides, it's being talked about warmly in the industry media, because it's a really respectable and absolutely unique title – it's not surprising that on average, up to 1100 players spend time with it.
Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition
- Age: over 21 years ( EE version – over 7 years)
- Genre: isometric RPG
- Peak number of concurrent players last month: 1018
"You must gather a party before venturing forth" – we learned in the first and second installments of Baldur's Gate, and it went down in the annals of gaming. As did Baldur's Gate itself – one of the best isometric RPG series ever (don't hit me, old Fallout fans – F1 and F2 are cool too).
Why the sudden interest in refreshed versions of games from 1998 and 2000? During daily peaks, they entertain nearly 600-700 people at a time! Let's begin with the fact that both games were released as Enhanced Editions, the former in 2012 and the latter in 2013.
The biggest "culprit" here, however, is probably nostalgia. Well, there are mods for Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition (affecting mainly the gameplay), but let's not kid ourselves – it's one of the most important games of the millenials' childhood, so the sentiment tends to be huge sometimes. But can anything compare to the famous quote from the favorite production from 20 years ago?
