While 2022 turned out to be an amazing year for JRPG fansGamers who prefer the western variety will have a big smile on their faces watching this most anticipated list of role-playing games for 2023, which is dominated by western RPGs. That’s not to say there aren’t a lot of exciting titles to develop this year in Asia, but 2023 will see the return of many big developers like Bethesda and Blizzard and franchises like Baldur’s Gate, not to mention the first true triple open world. An RPG set in the wizarding world.
If BioWare managed to release Dragon Age: Dreadwolf and Square Enix launched Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth This year too, so 2023 could truly become an unforgettable moment in the history books of the genre.
Also in Wccftech’s Most Anticipated Games of 2023 lists: struggle
Starfield (1H 2023 – PC/XSS/XSX)
Bethesda Game Studios is making a comeback to single-player games eight years after Fallout 4. Additionally, Starfield will be the studio’s first new IP in twenty-five years. Those two factors alone would be enough to propel its hype to the stars, but fans also saw a juicy gameplay demo at not-E3 2022, where Todd Howard demonstrated a very ambitious game that spans a thousand fully explorable planets. Starfield also scores Bethesda’s return to its old-school role-playing game design rootsproviding players with many ways to express themselves both visually and functionally.
The dialogue based persuasion system was designed to be more natural, romantic relationship will be more complex, and the number of vocal lines is through the roof. But the game also includes space flight, space combat, building spaceships, smuggling, as well as disabling, boarding and even stealing enemy spaceships. All player characters will initially belong to the Explorers faction called Constellation, although it is possible to join other major factions, including the Crimson Fleet Pirates. Next to a postponed to the first half of this yearfans are counting the days until the next showcase, which could include the final release date.
Baldur’s Gate III (August – PC/Mac)
The third installment in the most beloved cRPG series ever made finally comes to fruition in August after nearly three years of Early Access development. Building on the incredibly successful release of Divinity: Original Sin 2Larian Studios has significantly expanded its workforce to create the The most complete video game render based on D&D 5th Edition. The developers are also trying to marry a strong cinematic approach with the full-fledged player agency that Dungeons and Dragons is known for. The combat system and role-playing options have been further enhanced from the already lofty heights of Divinity: Original Sin 2.
Players can select one of the available Origin characters or simply create their own. Anyway, the tale takes place about a hundred years after the end of Baldur’s Gate II, shortly after the descent into the tabletop adventure Avernus. The terrible mind flayers have launched an invasion of Faerûn, abducting several people and implanting them with Illithid tadpoles, parasites that can be a source of power but also eventually turn the host into a mind flayer. Following a chaotic escape enabled by a Githyanki assault, the player character joins other survivors from the wreckage who share the same life or death situation: how to remove the tadpole without dying.
Hogwarts Legacy (PC/PS5/XSS/XSX February 10; PS4/XB1 April 4; Nintendo Switch July 25)
No matter your view of the author’s legacy, Avalanche Software’s take on the tumultuous tuition of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is already shaping up to be one of the best games blockbuster AAA movie set to arrive in 2023. Set in the late 1800s, long before any books or movies released to date, Hogwarts Legacy features a fifth-grade student protagonist who arrives late for school in magic for unknown reasons and has to catch up with the other students. More importantly, the protagonist harbors a secret, being able to manipulate an ancient but dangerous type of magic that other parties attempt to harness for their own means.
Players will be able to create their witch or wizard (including transgender options), select their house, and attend various classes such as Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, and Potions. During Hogwarts Legacy, they will develop their abilities and learn powerful spells.
The beloved castle is fully recreated in game, although the developers have confirmed that other locations will be available for exploration, such as the Forbidden Forest, Diagon Alley, and Hogsmeade. Methods of travel include broom flying (with optional broom racing challenges) and the ability to tame, mount, and ride a series of magical beasts.
Diablo IV (June 6 – PC/PS4/PS5/XB1/XSS/XSX)
The king of hack-and-slash RPGs returns to heat up this year’s summer to hellish levels. While Diablo III was a success on its own, Blizzard is taking feedback from the franchise’s most hardcore aficionados by returning to the characteristic darkness of Diablo II and vastly improving core gameplay mechanics like the skill system, character progressionand retail.
Blizzard said there was more than 150 dungeons in the game, and more will be added after launch. Diablo IV also incorporates a seamless open-world design and some MMO-like elements, such as PvP and PvE events (e.g. joining nearby players to take down a roaming boss). For the first time in a Diablo game, there will be full cross-play and cross-progression between all supported platforms, PC, and consoles.
Plot-wise, player characters will have to contend with their creator, the demon Lilith, who spawned the Nephalem race by uniting with the rogue angel Inarius. The feud between the two will be at the center of the story.
Final Fantasy XVI (June 22 – PlayStation 5)
The only example of Japanese RPGs on this year’s list, it’s the first numbered Final Fantasy game released since Final Fantasy XV. While this game was slightly divisive due to the move from turn-based ATB to real-time combat, Square-Enix’s Creative Business Unit III has already had a positive performance with the next evolution of combat from action under the direction of the production of Final Fantasy XIV. Naoki Yoshida. During certain segments, protagonist Clive Rosfield can become host to an Eikon, a summoned monster from Final Fantasy lore as a Phoenix. Eikon vs. Eikon battles have dedicated mechanics.
Set in the world of Valisthea, FFXVI is not an open world game. Famous Yoshida-san said it would have taken Square Enix about fifteen years to make it an open world title. Final Fantasy XVI got a mature rating, although it’s too early to tell if the darker narrative will hurt or help the experience. This year the game will only be available on PlayStation 5, but PC gamers can expect to get their hands on the title in early 2024 if the six-month exclusivity window is an indication.
Honorable Mentions
As mentioned above, there are so many interesting RPGs currently slated for release in 2023. Below, we’ve listed ten more that you should follow.
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