If You Liked ‘Baldur’s Gate 3,’ Check Out These Similar Games!
As I near the end of my first full Baldur’s Gate 3 playthrough, I’ve been meditating on its various qualities that make it such an outstanding game. While not without flaws, BG3 is full of all the best things about various RPGs I’ve played throughout the years, enough that it’s easily become one of my favorite games of all time.
That said, some people might need a similar fix once they’re done with the game, so I thought I’d compile those very games in a list as recommendations. These recs come with various reasons why they came to mind, from gameplay style to narrative finesse. Of course, this is also not the fullest list it could be, as I’m still new to isometric RPGs and have yet to try games like the original two Baldur’s Gates and the famous Planescape: Torment—but you’re welcome to add similar recs in the comments.
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
If you found yourself getting really into the gameplay and lore of BG3, to the point where you just kept wanting more, then you absolutely need to play Pathfinder: WOTR. Though the Pathfinder series is ultimately different in ostensible ways from DnD, they have enough similarities that I had multiple “Spider-Man pointing at Spider-Man” moments while playing both games.
Now, as a fair warning, WOTR is a much more intense game regarding gameplay and scope. Even so, as a newcomer to the Pathfinder world and a relative newcomer to isometric RPGs, I still got a lot of enjoyment out of this game, to the point where I consider it to be one of the best fantasy titles I’ve played.
Enderal
BG3 does a great job of engrossing you in its world, even if you’re like me and never had much success in getting your friends to start a DnD campaign with you. As such, it reminded me quite a bit of Enderal: a total conversion mod for Skyrim that blows its source title out of the water entirely.
Enderal is one of the best games I’ve ever played, with a story that kept me thinking about it long after I finished. I felt completely immersed in its world throughout my entire playthrough, and have been looking forward to the next period I have enough time to replay it. Best of all, it’s free!
The Longest Journey
What I found really refreshing about BG3 was how willing it was to lean into the more playful, fantastical elements of fantasy, which we don’t see too much of anymore. It seems like the default standard for fantasy these days is “grimdark,” which is fine and dandy, but there’s also quite a lot of fun to be had in the fantasy standard I grew up with: silly, looney, and whimsical.
And that’s exactly what The Longest Journey is all about. Though it’s a much older game, with dated gameplay that forces me to use a guide half the time, it’s chock full of delightful worldbuilding and incredibly clever writing—the sort that you don’t really see a lot of, these days! I should also include its sequel, Dreamfall: The Longest Journey, as a worthy title to play in succession, but in my opinion TLJ still squeaks out on top.
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
Ironic as it might be, some RPGs forget that one of the most enjoyable things about their genre is their capacity to allow players to really sink into a role. BG3 was so good about this that, many times, I felt the same way as I did while playing Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines.
VTMB, janky as it is, has a good reputation for a reason. It doesn’t pull any dissonant punches and makes sure that you never, ever stop feeling like a vampire, with dialogue that had me grinning ear to ear. The best games let you play as a nasty little thang and tell people to fuck off with reckless abandon, so it’s telling that VTMB lets you do this multiple times from the jump.
Related: Best Diablo Game: All Diablo Games, Ranked on Twinfinite
Disco Elysium
While I wouldn’t exactly peg Disco Elysium as a “fantasy” title, it falls into a similar realm as VTMB, in the sense that you really fall into a role and a world while playing it. In the same way that BG3 masterfully gets players into a certain mindset, Disco Elysium really has you sinking into that “tragically wet and sloppy amnesiac cop” mentality.
Of course, though, it’s much more than that, even though the memes are funny to play around with. Disco Elysium is soulful in ways that BG3 touches on, but doesn’t exactly lean into in quite the same way. If you want a similar-ish gameplay experience that doesn’t have any combat, is still well-written and hilarious (if even more so), and will leave you profoundly changed afterwards, you need to try this game. It’s one of the only video games I recommend every single person play, even those who hate gaming.
Divinity: Original Sin 2
So this is a bit of an obvious suggestion, considering it was Larian’s previous title before BG3, but still. There were so many moments throughout BG3 where I happily sat back and thought, Wow, this reminds me of Divinity: Original Sin 2, I should replay that game.
Larian games have a certain structure to them that, admittedly, can be a frustrating and annoying learning curve to get used to. But once you do get used to them, you’ll realize they’re built with incredible detail and care, and then it’s like a whole other game suddenly opens itself up to you. DOS2 isn’t as intuitive or polished as BG3, but it’s still an unforgettable time—the sort that had me wondering why I couldn’t eat body parts in BG3 to gain the deceased’s memories. IYKYK.
Dragon Age: Origins
I’ve seen a lot of people saying that BG3 reminds them of the first time they played Dragon Age: Origins, and I couldn’t agree with this statement more. There’s a magical quality to BG3 that you don’t see a lot of in modern games, and for many, the last time they felt this magic was with Origins.
This is because Origins was the full package, replete with every good characteristic in this list and then some. It was a gorgeously crafted world with phenomenal characters and remarkably in-depth roleplaying mechanics, the likes of which still has me repping Dalish pride to this day. If you haven’t played Origins yet, but you’ve been enjoying BG3, then I really have nothing more to say other than you’re missing out if you don’t immediately give it a try once your playthrough ends.
(Featured Image: Larian Studios/Bioware)
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