We thought the age of turn-based RPGs was over after the genre lost some of its luster during the more action-oriented Xbox 360 era. But something funny happened: turn-based RPGs suddenly became cool again. The evidence is clear as day. Baldur’s Gate 3 is one of the most popular games of the decade, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was one the best reviewed new games of 2025 with a 92 on Metacritic and won Game of the Year at The Game Awards. Turn-based is all the way back, and it’s never been better.
As we continue to move through this new turn-based renaissance, it’s worth spending a moment to take inventory of some of the best turn-based RPGs that are available right now. Some are very new, and some are very much not new, but all of them are obtainable and playable in the present, and are pretty much guaranteed to hit the spot for any gamer with a hankering for a more cerebral style of battle. So let’s look at some of the best turn-based RPGs currently around, with a list that is presented in no particular order.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Developer: Sandfall Interactive
- Publisher: Kepler Interactive
- Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
On the strange island of Lumiere, a mysterious goddess known as the Paintress has been painting a countdown for 67 years. The number decreases by one each year, and when the number is painted, everyone who is that age or older is killed. Clair Obscur, which features Daredevil star Charlie Cox in the lead role, follows a team tasked with taking down the Paintress before she can paint the next number–33. It’s a compelling fantasy premise, but it’s Clair Obscur’s strangely rhythmic and deep battle system that will keep you engrossed.
Dragon Quest VII Reimagined
- Developer: HexaDrive
- Publisher: Square Enix
- Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series S|X, Switch, Switch 2
This classic JRPG, initially released in 2000 for the original PlayStation, tells the story of a group of friends who travel back in time and discover that the world is extremely different than they thought it was. Like a lot of JRPGs from that era, Dragon Quest VII was one of those games that took 80+ hours just to play the main story. But a new remake, released in February 2026 for modern systems with gorgeous new diorama-esque environments, manages to streamline the experience so that it goes by much quicker even though it actually has more content. Imagine that–a game that tries to waste your time less than it could.
Disco Elysium
- Developer: ZA/UM
- Publisher: ZA/UM
- Platform(s): PC, Mac, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, Switch
An unstable detective has to investigate a murder while wrestling with a pretty intense existential crisis in this noir thriller story–not exactly your typical video game plot. But hey, Disco Elysium is certainly not your typical video game, since the gameplay largely just involves having conversations and passing or failing skill checks. Essentially a hard-boiled choose-your-own-adventure detective story with DnD rules, Disco Elysium doesn’t cleanly fit any existing RPG subgenre. But it’s also a game where you’ll spend a lot of time staring at the screen agonizing over your next move, so it scratches that turn-based itch very effectively.
Persona 3 Reload
- Developer: P-Studio
- Publisher: Sega
- Platform(s): PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, Switch 2
Once upon a time, the Persona series was just a couple of dungeon crawlers. They were good dungeon crawlers with a really interesting turn-based hook, but they were missing the high school social simulation aspect that’s become the franchise’s defining feature. The life sim component was introduced in Persona 3 and refined heavily in Persona 4 and 5–and Persona 3 Reload, a built-from-the-ground-up remake of the third game that was released in 2024, brings us full circle by incorporating many of the quality-of-life changes that were added in those later games. The end result is the best version of a classic JRPG.
Metaphor: ReFantazio
- Developer: Studio Zero
- Publisher: Sega
- Platform(s): PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
The Persona series has been stuck on the fifth game for almost a decade now, and that may be because Katsura Hashino, who directed Persona 3, 4 and 5, decided to make Metaphor: ReFantazio instead of forging ahead on Persona 6. But that didn’t end up being much of a problem, since Metaphor–which keeps some Persona-inspired elements, like the battle system, and takes them in new directions that might not be possible if this were actually a Persona game–became one of the best reviewed games of the century with a 94 on Metacritic.
