I have tried a ton of RPGs, and most just don’t click for me. Here are a few:
Skyrim - enjoyed Morrowind for the side content, Skyrim just felt empty
Chrono Trigger - enjoyed until about halfway through with the battle with Magus; felt very RNG dependent, or maybe I was under leveled; I bailed after 5 or so attempts that all ended the same way (healer got killed and everyone got picked off)
Pillars of Eternity - burned out somewhere in Act 2 (20-25 hours); combat system annoyed me, and I dislike picking new abilities
Banner Saga - story is great, but I hate the combat, so I bailed
Some things about me:
I don’t care about leveling up/character builds, it feels like a chore; abilities also don’t interest me
I hate grinding
using items feels like cheating, so I tend to just use character abilities (I will heal if needed); I’d rather “git gud” than buy and use items
turn based combat (tactics) is generally boring, but I do like puzzles, so that can make it acceptable
I don’t like the feeling of being OP, I want to struggle through the end
I don’t like loot
That said, here are a few that I’ve really enjoyed:
ARPGs like Ys and Zelda - items are rare or are tools in a puzzle-like system; favorites are Ys 1, Ys Origin, Zelda: A Link to the Past, and Zelda: Skyward Sword (probably because I played Skyward Sword recently); I dislike BotW, and Memories of Celceta has been dragging a bit (I’m near the end, but excited to finish)
interesting RPGs like Undertale - short and very unique experience
Souls-like games - challenge involving melee/dodging keeps me going
Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky - not a fan of the combat, but the story is interesting somewhat at least; I’m about 2/3 through I think (30 hours), but I’ve taken a multi-month break; likewise, Xenoblade Chronicles is interesting so far, but I’m not super excited about it (may bump down to story mode to get through it, the combat sucks imo)
Nier: Replicant - great story, leveling stayed out of the way, and I never felt like I needed to grind or upgrade gear
I really like the storylines of RPGs, I just don’t like actually playing them. Unfortunately, my preferred ARPG genre is filled with loot nonsense, and I’ve played most of the ones that don’t really on that as a mechanic. Perhaps my favorite RPG-adjacent game not mentioned already is Yakuza 0, I’m not a fan of the combat, but he story is amazing and the side content is fun.
Does anyone feel similarly? Do you have any suggestions for other games to try?
You might try The Division. There should be a brief trial iirc. It does have loot, but you said you hate buying items too, so it seems like you just dislike gear in general. You aren’t required to manage your gear or loot well to complete the game, you just want to pick up better gear as you level up. There is some skills/tech stuff in there that can take a bit to get used to.
You won’t be OP. You’ll be using cover to stay alive. Some enemies are bullet sponges.
If you’ve ever had to hit the streets somewhere immediately following a natural disaster, it might feel a little eerie or uncanny. At least, it did for me.
The snow is beautiful.
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You might try The Division. There should be a brief trial iirc. It does have loot, but you said you hate buying items too, so it seems like you just dislike gear in general. You aren’t required to manage your gear or loot well to complete the game, you just want to pick up better gear as you level up. There is some skills/tech stuff in there that can take a bit to get used to.
You won’t be OP. You’ll be using cover to stay alive. Some enemies are bullet sponges.
If you’ve ever had to hit the streets somewhere immediately following a natural disaster, it might feel a little eerie or uncanny. At least, it did for me. The snow is beautiful.