The RPGs Worth Keeping in Mind for 2023
2023 will be a good time for RPG fans - several big titles will come out, but there's more to come. Here are a handful of lesser-known games to look out for in the next twelve months.
The new year should bring many interesting video games (provided there won’t be so many major delays). In 2023, especially lucky are fans of role-playing games, who get to choose from a wide range of titles. Below, we have listed the most exciting RPG games that will hit the market in 2023.
Let's note that we haven't included soulslike productions nor those that have more in common with the action-adventure genre than real RPGs. On the other hand, we've added games entering Early Access in 2023.
Of course, we may have missed (or ignored) some of the productions you are interested in. Let us know in the comments which RPGs you're most looking forward to this year.
The biggest RPGs of 2023
Not all games require coverage. You've surely heard of Diablo IV, Hogwarts Legacy, Baldur's Gate III, Starfield, Gothic Remake, Final Fantasy XVI and Forspoken which are due to be released in 2023. We also mentioned them often on our site.
I only hope that each of these titles will be released on time and will live up to our expectations. In the meantime, let's focus on RPGs, which are a little less known to the public.
Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon
The Arthurian legends has inspired many artists and video game developers. The latter is joined by an independent Polish Awaken Realms Digital who released their debut title in 2021. Now the developer is back with Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon, coming to Steam Early Access in March 2023.
The first game combined an open-world RPG with a card game and a roguelike and took place in the universe of the Polish board game Tainted Grail designed by Krzysztof Piskorski. The writer presented a dark vision of the world from the legends of King Arthur and Avalon, which is far from the paradise land known from Celtic legends.
This time, the Poles completely changed the concept (partly during production). Instead of a game with an isometric view, the authors decided to create a first-person RPG. The developer promises an extensive game that gives a lot of freedom in terms of story choices.
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn
At the beginning of 2023, we will also see a new game by Aurora44, after Ashen - Flintloc, k : The Siege of Dawn released in 2018. Here, too, we do not know the exact release date, and the creators are not too eager to share new information, but we believe that we will see the title in the first months of the year.
After several thousand years, an ancient god awoke from his slumber, and as could be expected, sent undead armies to kill all the living. The players assume the role of Nor Vanek, who with his companion - magical fox Enki - has to stop the invasion through classic means - magic, firearms, and melee weapons.
We'll receive support from allies, albeit only controlled by AI. This means no multiplayer.
Zoria: Age of Shattering
The next game on the list also doesn't offer multiplayer. However, in Zoria: Age of Shattering, the companions (even the AI ones) are everything, as it will be up to them (sporting different classes and having unique personal motivations) to save the world of Uram.
The game is a classic RPG with a turn-based but dynamic combat system where the right positioning, skills and environmental factors are key to victory. We dabble in occasional survival - the party has to rest, craft and repair items, and develop their base of operations to be able to meet more and more difficult challenges.
Zoria: Age of Shaterring will hit PCs in 2023 (yes, the Tiny Trinket Games team has followed the trend and has not yet announced the exact release date).
Broken Roads
If you're looking for something with more emphasis on tactics and storytelling, you might be interested in Broken Roads . Here you find yourself in post-nuclear Australia, making critical choices and engaging in turn-based combat in an inhospitable world where everyone is fighting for survival.
Smells like Fallout ? No wonder, because the Drop Bear Bytes team includes Colin McComb, whom fans can remember from the first two installments of the series and both parts of Torment .
This is probably why, despite the change of continent, Fallout fans should feel at home, both in terms of climate and gameplay mechanics - with the hero's moral compass at the forefront.
Broken Roads will debut in 2023 on PCs, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch.
Dark Envoy
Dragon Age and Mass Effect have been cited as an inspiration by many developers, but to add FTL: Faster Than Light to that list is unique. This is how the creators of the next Polish RPG in this list describe their game: Dark Envoy, which is to be released this year on PC, XOne, PS4, XSX/S and PS5. The game had its first delay in September 2022, and currently no new release date has been given.
For the game itself, instead of pure fantasy known from their previous production (Tower of Time), we will find ourselves in a world where magic lives alongside (not very advanced) technology. Plotwise, we follow a story of siblings who embark on a life-changing journey on an inherited airship. The game is said to be highly non-linear - there is no guarantee that the main characters will live through the adventure.
The whole is presented in an isometric view, with tactical real time clashes. The game will allow 2-man coop.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden falls into action RPG subgenre, but the plot premise is more unusual than in Dark Envoy . In the new game from the Don't Nod studio, we will play the role of a 17th-century ghost hunter who will travel across America in the company of his deceased beloved.
The world of New Eden delivers both elements typical of action RPGs - exploration in real-time and dynamic combat with numerous enemies, as well as making choices that affect the gameplay - the game is being developed by the authors of Life is Strange, so we are safe in this regard. The gameplay will be further diversified by the need to use skills not only of the protagonist but also of the spirit of his deceased partner.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden doesn't have an exact release date yet. Nevertheless, the game is coming to PCs and consoles PS4, XOne, PS5 and XSX/S.
Ravenbound
Card game elements are in fashion lately. At least that is what we gather from seeing them in many different productions. Ravenbound follows the same vein - we have rougelike and card game mechanics in an action RPG in which we assume control of many different heroes.
Don't worry - there is a individual who is the main hero. But before he - Raven - a being created by the gods, can face the Traitor, the hero has to gather his strength by traversing the land of Avalt in the body of many warriors called Vessels.
Even if your Vessel dies (yes, permadeath appears in this title), the scored experience stays. Our goal in this game is to make Raven powerful enough to have a chance at the Traitor. But before that happens, be ready for letting allies go.
The Awakener: Risen
The Awakener: Risen is to be a treat for those who are longing for the return of the Dragon's Dogma series (soon we will see the second part which has been announced some time ago) . The fantastic world inspired by the European Middle Ages which is to be the background is still a question mark, but Taner Games studio has already reavealed some info about the game.
What we know is that the hero will explore vast locations (with horse and dragon mounts to use), represent one of three possible character classes, and fight spectacular arcade battles against various beasts, including powerful bosses. From time to time, there is an ancient ruin or an inn to visit.
The Awakener: Risen also doesn't have an exact release date. The game is coming to PC, PS4 and PS5.
Black Myth: Wukong
Yes, Game Science isn't making a soulslike, but everything pointed towards that it will be one. Well, thanks to this, Black Myth: WuKong can find its place on this list.
More about the game, then? We are dealing with an action RPG based on a classic Chinese novel about the journey to the West starring the titular Monkey King and - most likely - the monk Xuanzang. The titular hero can assume the forms of various animals to have an easier time dealing with enemies and is equipped with a staff.
The release (on PC, XSX/S and PS5) is scheduled for this year. We are still waiting for an exact date or at least some news about this production.
Unawake
RPG developers often forget to supply a release date for their productions. Could this be the inspiration behind the title of this game which also waits for such information?
Rather not, because the hero will have his hands full with an eternal conflict of forces of heaven and hell, in which he got entwined during archaeological research. Now he has no choice but to travel through an ancient city full of various creatures, in a fully-fledged first-person perspective. Fortunately, our hero gains access to multiple tools of destruction and gradually unlocked abilities and elemental powers that will make it easier to mow down hordes of enemies.
Unawake will be released in 8 language versions (English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Polish, Chinese and Turkish - subtitles only).
Avowed
Are you surprised that the new RPG from Obsidian Entertainment was not listed along with the rest of the "big hits" of 2023? Now you're thinking about it. The problem is that the 2023 debut of the game is still in question. The 2023 date is indicated by various leaks, but we are still waiting for an official confirmation.
We also know very little about the game. It's supposed to be a classic FPP action RPG taking place in the world of Eora. Yes, the same one we visited in the Pillars of Eternity series . Let's hope that we'll find out more soon, and the creators won't make us wait long for the premiere.
Archaelund
Archaelund from 4 Dimension Games is in a similar situation. The game was supposed to be available in Steam's Early Access in 2020, and yet only two months ago the developer was still unable to give any date. Yes, the developers want to release the game "as soon as possible", but apparently that does not mean "soon".
However, if we finally live to this event, Archaelund may be an alternative for those who are also looking for classic RPGs, but do not like the post-nuclear vibes of Broken Roads . As long as they don't mind the FPP mode during exploration, because in combat the game will switch to the top-down view.
In Archaelund we will find ourselves in a world ravaged by a magical catastrophe, where the remnants of a once-powerful empire were forced to flee to overseas colonies. Unfortunately, they haven't found peace there either, because this piece of land was divided between warring kingdoms - even many generations later, when a way back to the lost continent has been discovered.
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