Games To Play If You Love Medieval Fantasy

Gamers tend to be fans of medieval fantasy, and those who love medieval fantasy tend to love video games. Due to this, a lot of the most well-known and popular game series are in the medieval fantasy genre. The genre is known for its swords, dragons, monarchies, and knights.

The root of the medieval fantasy genre got its start in literature. It blends magic and folklore with the culture, economics, government structure, and sometimes the history of medieval Europe. Some of the most famous book series are in this genre, such as Lord of the Rings, A Song of Ice and Fire, and The Chronicles of Narnia.

Updated May 4, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: The medieval fantasy genre is one of the most fascinating settings that movies, TV shows, and games have explored time and time again. In the case of the latter, there are many video games that fans of the genre will have a great time with. Many games use this setting to elevate the quality of their titles to new levels. The sheer wealth of games that players can choose from can be overwhelming, so players will always appreciate the idea of checking out a carefully curated list of titles. These games in the medieval fantasy genre are worth the many hours that players can invest in these magical titles.

23 Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice

Deals With Mental Health & Psychosis In A Norse-Inspired Fantasy World

A beautiful Action title that took many players by surprise, the decent combat and unique story told in Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is one of the best parts of an experience that resonated with a lot of people. The game deals with many mature themes, as Senua deals with her fragile mental state. She battles both her own demons and actual enemies in a game that serves as a self-reflection of her character.

The sequel to this title promises to elevate the series to bigger and better heights, and fans will be glad to explore this tantalizing world even more. The medieval fantasy setting is further augmented by elements of Norse mythology, making it one of the best titles that players can check out if they want to explore a unique world with an intriguing main character at the heart of it all.

22 Dante’s Inferno

Dante Must Traverse The Nine Circles Of Hell

It’s easy to write off Dante’s Inferno as nothing more than an uninspired God of War clone. However, this is a reductive way to explain a title that features unique aesthetics and engaging combat. It helps that this title’s setting makes it amazing. Dante himself is reimagined as a Templar Knight who must traverse the nine circles of hell to save his wife.

What follows is a brutal and gory adventure that is not for the faint of heart. The setting is just one piece of the puzzle that makes Dante’s Inferno such a fascinating game. Players love utilizing a wealth of combos to take out the enemies standing in their way in the most memorable and exciting manner possible.

21 Lionheart: Legacy Of The Crusader

Combines An Established Medieval World With Sorcery And An Epic Plot

It’s a shame that Lionheart‘s budget ran out before the game could achieve its grand vision. Shades of brilliance could be seen in the wonderful city of Barcelona and its surrounding areas, but the title fails to capture this excitement after players leave this city to focus on the main plot. As a result, this underrated CRPG has been lost to the sands of time.

Legacy of the Crusader‘s real-time with pause combat and excellent worldbuilding (especially in the earlier stages of the title) make it a great CRPG that more people need to check out. As long as players don’t mind the game showing its budgetary constraints in the latter stages, they’ll be more than pleased by what this amazing title brings to the table.

20 Tyranny

An Intriguing Look At The Concept Of Evil

Tyranny is one of the most underrated CRPGs ever made. If the game had managed to achieve its full vision, then it’s not a stretch to say that this game could’ve reached the same heights as other legendary games in the genre like Divinity: Original Sin 2 and Disco Elysium.

The exploration of evil in Tyranny is nuanced and engaging, and the medieval fantasy setting adds to the allure of this title. Fans of amazing story-heavy games that don’t portray morality in a done-to-death binary form will love what Tyranny brings to the table.

19 Gothic 2

A Dark Fantasy Title With A Unique Gameplay Loop

Piranha Bytes is a studio that has garnered a small but loyal fanbase. Most people cite Gothic 2 asthe game that got them into the studio’s titles. This title is a massive improvement over its predecessor in every department.

The story is more engaging than before and combat is tweaked to make it easier to get into. Gothic 2 rewards patience and is rife with immersive design that leads to players getting completely lost in this one-of-a-kind Action RPG.

18 Pillars Of Eternity

A Lovable Ode To The CRPGs Of The Past

Obsidian Entertainment has made some of the greatest RPGs of all time, and fans should thank Pillars of Eternity for helping this company stay afloat. This Kickstarter game served as a desperate attempt from the company to avoid bankruptcy, and the success of this title helped it remain a major player in the industry.

Pillars of Eternity is an excellent CRPG that is a blast to play through and perfect for beginners to get into if they aren’t familiar with this classic genre. The role-playing is great, and both the main and side quests are pretty riveting despite a few problems cropping up here and there.

17 Divinity: Original Sin 2

Combines Establishes Fantasy Tropes With Medieval Inspirations

Divinity: Original Sin 2 is hailed by many as one of the greatest CRPGs ever made, and it’s easy to see why this is the case. The game is grander in scope than its predecessor in every way, which is a massive achievement in its own right, given just how massive the first Original Sin game was.

Featuring a wealth of amazing characters, tactical gameplay, and an excellent story that will keep players hooked till the very end, Original Sin 2 is an incredible medieval fantasy game that fans of the genre owe it to themselves to check out. The game can take a while to get a hold of, but patient players will be rewarded with an immensely deep and satisfying gameplay experience that doesn’t have any equal.

16 The Octopath Traveler Series

An Amazing Modern JRPG With Tried-And-Tested Fantasy Elements

The HD-2D art style has become incredibly popular for a whole host of reasons, and many people cite Octopath Traveler as the game that made this design so popular in the first place. Despite featuring its fair share of issues, Octopath Traveler was a great first attempt for a series that wanted to harken back to the classic era of JRPGs while also featuring some unique additions of its own.

Any complaints that players had about the first Octopath Traveler title were promptly addressed in the second game, which is considered to be a vastly better experience by many. The main party now actively engages in each story instead of being relegated to the sidelines, which is a simple yet much-needed change that helped players get even more invested in the overarching narrative.

15 A Plague Tale Series

Set During The Black Plague, With A Fantasy Twist

While the fantasy aspect of A Plague Tale is pretty muted, it’s still quite prominent and plays a huge role in making the Black Plague setting of the game feel all the more popular and relevant. The first game was an admirable title that focused on stealth and had several nerve-wracking encounters that could be quite a pain to deal with at times.

However, it’s the second game that flexed its budget with larger areas and an epic story. While some people felt like the charm of Innocence was lost in Requiem, there’s no denying that this title is infinitely more polished and engaging than its predecessor in many ways. The main story is also quite riveting in its own right, featuring an ending that will shock players to their very core.

14 The Witcher Series

games-fans-can-check-out”> One Of The Best Medieval Fantasy games Fans Can Check Out

With medieval fantasy having its roots in literature, it makes sense that some medieval fantasy games are based on book series. The Witcher is one of those games. While the series has three titles, it is the third title that won gamers over for its open-world map and many quests.

Even non-gamers or book fans are now familiar with The Witcher as well, ever since the Netflix series came out. For fans of the Netflix series, the game is worth a look. It does take place after the events of the show though, so there will be spoilers for the fate of Ciri, Dandelion, and Yennefer.

13 Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Leans Heavily Into The Medieval Fantasy Genre

Lately, the Fire Emblem series has leaned more and more into the medieval fantasy genre. One such recent title is Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The game is both an RPG and tactical, with the player controlling their army versus others. The game also incorporates some social simulation elements, such as getting certain characters to warm up to each other and giving out favorite gifts.

The biggest RPG element is choosing between the three houses. Each has a different set of characters and storyline later in the game. The game was released in 2019 for the Nintendo Switch.

12 The Dark Souls Series

The Quintessential Medieval Fantasy Game

This series is famous for its difficulty. Despite the learning curve though, it has gotten quite popular. Due to that, it influenced many games after it. It fits the definition of medieval fantasy in its weapons, armor, and creatures. There are classic medieval fantasy creatures like dragons as well as more original monsters.

Unlike Fable and Dragon Age, players shouldn’t expect much dialogue, choices, and other characters. Dark Souls is more about combat, exploration, and its own gloomy and sinister lore.

11 The MediEvil Series

A Cartoonish Take On Medieval Fantasy

As its title describes, MediEvil is a game set in medieval times. It certainly has fantasy elements as well because players play an undead knight. The hack and slash series has three titles and a 2019 remake/remaster.

The protagonist is Dan, also known as Sir Daniel Fortesque. He is brought back to life as an undead skeleton by an evil sorcerer along with an undead army. However, Dan is not loyal to the evil sorcerer and plans to defeat him to earn his place as a true hero that he could not be in life.

Open-World RPGs Combine Medieval Tropes With Fantasy Elements

Of course, the Elder Scrolls games are not to be missed. They are very much part of the medieval fantasy genre, complete with monarchs, dragons, and magic. Its latest huge title, Skyrim, has been the talk of the town since its 2011 release and constant remasters since. Even before Skyrim, though, there are still major fans of the older titles like Morrowind and Oblivion. The game has classic medieval races like elves and dwarves but also gets a little creative with cat and lizard people.

The series has mastered open-world gameplay in the sense that there is always something new to discover, but that does have its sacrifices, such as having deep characters and narrative. Still, many gamers have put over a thousand hours into this game.

9 Shovel Knight

Control A Knight In A Fantasy Realm

Shovel Knight was first released in 2014 and has spread to many platforms. It won many awards and critical acclaim among players and critics, winning Best Independent Game, 3DS eShop Game of the Year, Wii U eShop Game of the Year, Best 3DS Game, Best Music, and Best Platformer.

The game is a 2D side-scrolling platformer that has players fight enemies as they go through dungeons and collect as much treasure as possible. There is both a single and multiplayer mode as well as DLC.

8 The Baldur’s Gate Series

A Legendary CRPG Franchise Steeped In Medieval Fantasy

Baldur’s Gate is basically if Dungeons and Dragons was a single-player video game (though it does have multiplayer capabilities). The third title of this series is currently in beta, and fans are very excited about its release. It has come a long way since its first game in 1998.

Due to its use of choices and role-playing, the games are worth playing more than just once. Those who have early access to the most recent title have said a lot of positive things so far, such as the graphics, story, and sound. However, they are still working on the bugs and kinks, so the earlier Baldur’s Gate games may be a better pick for now.

7 The Fable Series

Set In A Fantasy World With Shades From Medieval Times

Fable has several games, with its first coming out in 2004. In every title, players get to explore and make choices in a medieval world. Choices are a little more cut and dry in terms of good and evil than in the Dragon Age games. While the graphics did get better with each game, most fans have agreed that the first title does have the best story.

Not only do choices influence the world, but they can change the look of the main protagonist. The story also has its share of memorable characters.

6 The Legend Of Zelda Series

A Lighter, More Wholesome Take On The Medieval Fantasy Genre

Everyone has heard of The Legend of Zelda, as it has existed since the 80s and has only gotten more popular with time. What makes the series so inviting to new players is that most titles have stand-alone stories that do not require the player to play the other games to understand what is going on.

Some titles fit more into medieval fantasy than others. For medieval fantasy fans, Twilight Princess and/or Ocarina of Time are good places to start. While Breath of the Wild is their more recent game, it has fewer medieval fantasy elements because Link is mostly exploring nature rather than towns.

5 Dragon’s Dogma

Realistic Medieval Equipment And A Lot Of Fantasy Elements

Dragon’s Dogma takes players from small fishing villages to massive castles and gives them plenty of opportunities to enjoy intricate medieval scenery. On top of that, quests will have players hunting on the side and seeking audiences with nobility.

The game also has one of the most memorable dragon characters out there. The game is available for many consoles, such as the PS3, PS4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox 360. For computer-based players, it is also available for Windows. For those who enjoy MMOs, Dragon’s Dogma Online has also existed since 2015.

4 The Dragon Age Series

Full Of Politics, Religion, And Deep Conflicts

Dragon Age is a series with a lot of compelling characters and choices. It is an original story with familiar creatures like dragons but also has built rich and unique lore for itself. The game has three major titles, such as Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, and Dragon Age: Inquisition, but it also has its fair share of books and comics.

For those who like to make their character and make in-game decisions with lasting effects, this is a great series. Dragon Age 2 let down a lot of players because they could only play a human character, but the other games have options like elf, dwarf, and qunari. The class the player picks can also influence the story as well, particularly in Origins.