Underrail every single time. Nothing else channels the feel and vibe of the original Fallout games.
Fair warning it's hard. You'd be well advised to look up a build because it is completely possible to make a build at character creation that cannot finish act 1.
It's not that hard. As long as you pick one main weapon style and stick with it the game is easily finishable on the default difficulty. Build meta and min/maxing is really only needed for hybrids and max difficulty--if you're trying to play a psychic puncher melee/mage guy or some other gimmick build.
In fact the hardest part of the game for me was just figuring out where to go after the intro mission, since the game's directions and orientation are a bit confusing.
Who actually doesn't? I always play RPGs on default settings, esp. for a first run. If the game is really too easy I may think about upping it. But I am of the opinion that difficulty settings are antithetical for RPGs anyway (Wizardry, Ultima, etc. did not have such settings). I find most RPGs just break and stop being fun if you double the enemy HP and damage or something. Turning the beginning of the game into a reloading simulator is boring, and I don't have unlimited time for gaming anymore.
If Ultimate or Extreme or whatever is the way you're "supposed" to play the game then the developer should be direct and make that the only playable difficulty.
If you liked the Shadowrun games (I'm assuming you mean any in the Shadowrun Returns trilogy), then you might like Wasteland, particularly 2 and/or 3 (1 is for when you want something really old school). The combat system in them is pretty similar, and you have an opportunity to fully design your team, since up to four members in it are totally custom-built by you. Though this admittedly has the drawback in that party member aren't nearly as in-depth as Shadowrun's are. As for the stories, WL2's is pretty forgettable, but I actually really liked WL3's and was impressed by the choices you could make in it and the directions you could take it in.
Baldur's Gate 3 might sound like a dud for you, but Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 (and Throne of Bhaal) might be up your alley. If you liked Dragon Age: Origins, you might like them if their more old school design doesn't bother you; DAO was made to be a spiritual successor to them after all. BG1 is admittedly a bit slow, light on its story and NPC characterization, and not the most well-balanced game, but BG2 is an absolutely fantastic.
The Fallout games might be worth checking out. The combat in the first two isn't good IMO, but where they really shine is the way they're structured. There is no set plot for them; you're given a goal at the beginning to find something, a lead on where to start, and from there, are free to progress in any way you see fit. They let you figure things out on your own, and in that, they can let you feel really clever, like you're a detective actively figuring out a mystery. And if you want something more modern, well, Fallout 3 and New Vegas are good as well. The former hasn't aged too well for me, but the latter is one of my favorite RPGs of all time because of the sheer number of ways you can steer the story.
I'd recommend Divinity: Original Sin 1 and/or 2, since they have the same combat system as BG3 without any of the woke baggage, but I'm not so sure your computer will be able to handle it.
Pathfinder as someone else already mentioned, both Kingmaker and Potr are great. Wasteland 2 and 3 are both really good, the first Witcher game is kind of like a crpg/action rpg hybrid. Idk how old you want to go but BG 1 and 2, FO 1 &2, and Planescape: Torment are all awesome.
Underrail is an isometric rpg heavily inspired by fallout, it’s also worth a playthrough,
It’s not quite the same but Final Fantasy Tactics is another choice, bit epic storyline, tactical combat. It’s more of a strategy game than an rpg though.
They're not very character driven, mind you, pretty old school feel both in gameplay / encounters. And the video games themselves have an interface that's basically 30 years old despite many remasters over the years. You're not going to get character creation sliders for scars and tattoos. You're not going to get voiced text and narration.
But once you wrap your head around the format, the games are absolutely excellent in storytelling, consequences, and definitely satisfy. Excellent world building, things just make sense in-universe. Multiple ways to do things? Yes. Decisions matter.
Bonus: Computer specs and easy on the wallet (priced very reasonably for the enjoyment time).
Second bonus: This guy keeps his politics out of games, so if you want to be hardline against cultural marxism infesting institutions, you can buy their stuff directly from them without giving money to Steam or GOG.
You talking about the Exile games? Damn that brings me back. I didn't realize they were still selling or had remasters. 30 years ago is probably when I last played. Exile might even be one of the first games that teenage me ever "hacked". I didn't want to pay the shareware fee, so I edited my save file to move my character two spaces beyond the shareware gate. The story got really weird and fascinating after that. Good times.
I haven't played them extensively myself, but from watching longplays of ATOM RPG and Encased it looks like they both scratch the classic Fallout or Shadowrun RPG itch.
Personally I'm just starting on ELEX. It starts out slow but I'm told it gets better as the world opens up. Not exactly the CRPG style that you allude too though. I don't even know if there will be any memorable characters.
That game has probably the worst difficulty progression of all games I've played. The first 5-10 hours are brutal. Can't even fight a chicken without getting torn to shreds. Then it levels off rather abruptly and balance is quite good for a long time and towards the end you get really OP.
IIRC bows were the strongest weapons, which is weird when you have laser guns and stuff like that. Because of the armor vs damage system the higher the damage per hit the better.
Only reason I kept going was because the world is really well built and interesting and once you get through the initial shitshow it's really fun. But damn those first hours are a mess.
Elex has been on my to-play list for a long time. I don't mind the progression, from what you describe seems the same as their Gothic games and I love those.
Not sure if they improved it but the kingdom building in the first one was just loading screen after loading screen after loading screen. I've not finished Pathfinder and is the reason I did not even try the second one. I've also noticed that they have all the classical woke crap, no white human male companions, fighter characters are generally women and some odd cringe dialogue here and there.
Neverwinter Nights 1 and 2 and their expansions are IMHO the best CRPGs ever. That said they're a bit dated by today's standards. They'll probably run on any recent-ish laptop, though.
Also the games Metal Max Xeno Reborn and Romancing SaGa Minstrel song are JRPGs but in may ways styled like a western CRPG and don't play like typical final fantasy.
Larian Studios Divinity Original Sins 2, best tactical combat with surprises I've ever seen. Same studio that made Baldur's Gate 3, but with really impressive combat and decent story. You play their games for the combat, the RP element is good, but not a pre-Zombie Bioware level of writing.
There is pillars of eternity, but the writing is not the best in my opinions. Okish fights, interesting class mechanics, losely similar to Baldur's Gate 2. They did have ship combat I liked a lot as a minigame for what it was, felt like I was I playing an old 1987 5 1/2" disk text game for the ship portion loads of fun and memories.
Depends a lot on what you can tolerate in terms of graphics. Also keep in mind that there are some graphical improvement patches available so search for that if you decide to play older CRPGs.
BG2 is great, Planescape Torment is incredible, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura is one of the games with a great setup - is not perfect but I love this game, Fallout 2 the first is good but the second is very good.
NWN is a great game, I recommend the ee but it is one of the games I had a hard time getting back in to it. Not sure why.
More modern ones:
Pillars of Eternity is a great attempt for a new IP but it had some flaws, my biggest being the lack of customization for classes and magic was to simplistic.
NWN2 and NWN2: MOTB, is one of my favorite games of all time. You have prestige classes and the story and companions are just so well made. Highly recommend it.
DOS 1 and 2 , I've honestly only played 2 fully, it allows for nice builds and theory crafting but the story is one of the stories that only work if you do not think about it. It also suffers from "humor", Laryan are really not good at making anything serious, they try to make some Marvel mix of humor and seriousness and it was just bad. Still the game is great and I had a ton of fun with it.
KOTOR 1 and 2, both great. Only downsize is that it is Star Wars. Highly recommend them.
While non-conventional, I would suggest Gothic 2 , is not a crpg per say but it is a story focused game that has interesting NPCs, some of them become your friends, check graphical mods to improve the experience. You can also play Gothic 1, is a great game that did a lot of very smart things that I admire but Gothic 2 is considerably better. If you like the idea of Gothic 2 I would also suggest The Chronicles of Myrtana and Risen . The downside of this games is that they don't have classes and customization is limited to what you put points in. Instead of classes you chose a faction, eg. join fire mages and you become a mage, join the militia and later you become a paladin.
Another non-conventional, Enderal: Forgotten Stories, you only get one companion but the game has very good and dark story. You need to have Skyrim as it runs on it but is a completely different game.
Did you play Mass Effect? That entire series is made in the same feel as BG games.
I'm replaying Arcanum now. CRPG, either in turn based or real time mode (you can toggle). Steampunk setting, really great character and world building, but it does have rough edges. Do NOT go directly from the start point to the beginning town, much less the first major city. Levelling up is crucial early game aspect.
I'm still enjoying Pathfinder Kingmaker.
It has some cringy feminist lines but overall a really solid game, and it is huge like old-school RPGs.
Wrath of the Righteous is excellent as well.
I'm tentatively hyped for Rogue Trader. I think it is early access or beta now and so far haven't heard anything bad.
Underrail every single time. Nothing else channels the feel and vibe of the original Fallout games.
Fair warning it's hard. You'd be well advised to look up a build because it is completely possible to make a build at character creation that cannot finish act 1.
It's not that hard. As long as you pick one main weapon style and stick with it the game is easily finishable on the default difficulty. Build meta and min/maxing is really only needed for hybrids and max difficulty--if you're trying to play a psychic puncher melee/mage guy or some other gimmick build.
In fact the hardest part of the game for me was just figuring out where to go after the intro mission, since the game's directions and orientation are a bit confusing.
Yeah but who actually plays default difficulty?
Who actually doesn't? I always play RPGs on default settings, esp. for a first run. If the game is really too easy I may think about upping it. But I am of the opinion that difficulty settings are antithetical for RPGs anyway (Wizardry, Ultima, etc. did not have such settings). I find most RPGs just break and stop being fun if you double the enemy HP and damage or something. Turning the beginning of the game into a reloading simulator is boring, and I don't have unlimited time for gaming anymore.
If Ultimate or Extreme or whatever is the way you're "supposed" to play the game then the developer should be direct and make that the only playable difficulty.
I'll crank anything up with regards to difficulty.
If you liked the Shadowrun games (I'm assuming you mean any in the Shadowrun Returns trilogy), then you might like Wasteland, particularly 2 and/or 3 (1 is for when you want something really old school). The combat system in them is pretty similar, and you have an opportunity to fully design your team, since up to four members in it are totally custom-built by you. Though this admittedly has the drawback in that party member aren't nearly as in-depth as Shadowrun's are. As for the stories, WL2's is pretty forgettable, but I actually really liked WL3's and was impressed by the choices you could make in it and the directions you could take it in.
Baldur's Gate 3 might sound like a dud for you, but Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 (and Throne of Bhaal) might be up your alley. If you liked Dragon Age: Origins, you might like them if their more old school design doesn't bother you; DAO was made to be a spiritual successor to them after all. BG1 is admittedly a bit slow, light on its story and NPC characterization, and not the most well-balanced game, but BG2 is an absolutely fantastic.
The Fallout games might be worth checking out. The combat in the first two isn't good IMO, but where they really shine is the way they're structured. There is no set plot for them; you're given a goal at the beginning to find something, a lead on where to start, and from there, are free to progress in any way you see fit. They let you figure things out on your own, and in that, they can let you feel really clever, like you're a detective actively figuring out a mystery. And if you want something more modern, well, Fallout 3 and New Vegas are good as well. The former hasn't aged too well for me, but the latter is one of my favorite RPGs of all time because of the sheer number of ways you can steer the story.
I'd recommend Divinity: Original Sin 1 and/or 2, since they have the same combat system as BG3 without any of the woke baggage, but I'm not so sure your computer will be able to handle it.
Pathfinder as someone else already mentioned, both Kingmaker and Potr are great. Wasteland 2 and 3 are both really good, the first Witcher game is kind of like a crpg/action rpg hybrid. Idk how old you want to go but BG 1 and 2, FO 1 &2, and Planescape: Torment are all awesome.
Underrail is an isometric rpg heavily inspired by fallout, it’s also worth a playthrough,
It’s not quite the same but Final Fantasy Tactics is another choice, bit epic storyline, tactical combat. It’s more of a strategy game than an rpg though.
That one that's supposed to be like OG Fallout where you explore a dome looked really good.
Oh yeah it's Encased, someone said below.
I always enjoy Spiderweb Software's games.
They're not very character driven, mind you, pretty old school feel both in gameplay / encounters. And the video games themselves have an interface that's basically 30 years old despite many remasters over the years. You're not going to get character creation sliders for scars and tattoos. You're not going to get voiced text and narration.
But once you wrap your head around the format, the games are absolutely excellent in storytelling, consequences, and definitely satisfy. Excellent world building, things just make sense in-universe. Multiple ways to do things? Yes. Decisions matter.
Bonus: Computer specs and easy on the wallet (priced very reasonably for the enjoyment time).
Second bonus: This guy keeps his politics out of games, so if you want to be hardline against cultural marxism infesting institutions, you can buy their stuff directly from them without giving money to Steam or GOG.
You talking about the Exile games? Damn that brings me back. I didn't realize they were still selling or had remasters. 30 years ago is probably when I last played. Exile might even be one of the first games that teenage me ever "hacked". I didn't want to pay the shareware fee, so I edited my save file to move my character two spaces beyond the shareware gate. The story got really weird and fascinating after that. Good times.
I haven't played them extensively myself, but from watching longplays of ATOM RPG and Encased it looks like they both scratch the classic Fallout or Shadowrun RPG itch.
Personally I'm just starting on ELEX. It starts out slow but I'm told it gets better as the world opens up. Not exactly the CRPG style that you allude too though. I don't even know if there will be any memorable characters.
That game has probably the worst difficulty progression of all games I've played. The first 5-10 hours are brutal. Can't even fight a chicken without getting torn to shreds. Then it levels off rather abruptly and balance is quite good for a long time and towards the end you get really OP.
IIRC bows were the strongest weapons, which is weird when you have laser guns and stuff like that. Because of the armor vs damage system the higher the damage per hit the better.
Only reason I kept going was because the world is really well built and interesting and once you get through the initial shitshow it's really fun. But damn those first hours are a mess.
Elex has been on my to-play list for a long time. I don't mind the progression, from what you describe seems the same as their Gothic games and I love those.
Don't feel ashamed to mod the F out of those games, the base is really good but there are a lot of shitty elements to them that mods will smooth over.
Not sure if they improved it but the kingdom building in the first one was just loading screen after loading screen after loading screen. I've not finished Pathfinder and is the reason I did not even try the second one. I've also noticed that they have all the classical woke crap, no white human male companions, fighter characters are generally women and some odd cringe dialogue here and there.
Neverwinter Nights 1 and 2 and their expansions are IMHO the best CRPGs ever. That said they're a bit dated by today's standards. They'll probably run on any recent-ish laptop, though.
For that matter, there is always Planescape Torment and Jade Empire. Both are classics that everyone should play at least once.
Also the games Metal Max Xeno Reborn and Romancing SaGa Minstrel song are JRPGs but in may ways styled like a western CRPG and don't play like typical final fantasy.
Another game none have recommended yet is The Age of Decadence
Beware that the combat is brutal and if you do not spec for it then death is swift.
Larian Studios Divinity Original Sins 2, best tactical combat with surprises I've ever seen. Same studio that made Baldur's Gate 3, but with really impressive combat and decent story. You play their games for the combat, the RP element is good, but not a pre-Zombie Bioware level of writing.
There is pillars of eternity, but the writing is not the best in my opinions. Okish fights, interesting class mechanics, losely similar to Baldur's Gate 2. They did have ship combat I liked a lot as a minigame for what it was, felt like I was I playing an old 1987 5 1/2" disk text game for the ship portion loads of fun and memories.
Depends a lot on what you can tolerate in terms of graphics. Also keep in mind that there are some graphical improvement patches available so search for that if you decide to play older CRPGs.
BG2 is great, Planescape Torment is incredible, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura is one of the games with a great setup - is not perfect but I love this game, Fallout 2 the first is good but the second is very good.
NWN is a great game, I recommend the ee but it is one of the games I had a hard time getting back in to it. Not sure why.
More modern ones: Pillars of Eternity is a great attempt for a new IP but it had some flaws, my biggest being the lack of customization for classes and magic was to simplistic.
NWN2 and NWN2: MOTB, is one of my favorite games of all time. You have prestige classes and the story and companions are just so well made. Highly recommend it.
DOS 1 and 2 , I've honestly only played 2 fully, it allows for nice builds and theory crafting but the story is one of the stories that only work if you do not think about it. It also suffers from "humor", Laryan are really not good at making anything serious, they try to make some Marvel mix of humor and seriousness and it was just bad. Still the game is great and I had a ton of fun with it.
KOTOR 1 and 2, both great. Only downsize is that it is Star Wars. Highly recommend them.
While non-conventional, I would suggest Gothic 2 , is not a crpg per say but it is a story focused game that has interesting NPCs, some of them become your friends, check graphical mods to improve the experience. You can also play Gothic 1, is a great game that did a lot of very smart things that I admire but Gothic 2 is considerably better. If you like the idea of Gothic 2 I would also suggest The Chronicles of Myrtana and Risen . The downside of this games is that they don't have classes and customization is limited to what you put points in. Instead of classes you chose a faction, eg. join fire mages and you become a mage, join the militia and later you become a paladin.
Another non-conventional, Enderal: Forgotten Stories, you only get one companion but the game has very good and dark story. You need to have Skyrim as it runs on it but is a completely different game.
Did you play Mass Effect? That entire series is made in the same feel as BG games.
Planescape Torment if you've never tried it. You can skip the Enhanced version and get the original with widescreen mods and fan patches.
I really enjoyed Horizon's Gate too. Retro style game with dozens of classes and tactical combat. Not much for characters or story though.
I'm replaying Arcanum now. CRPG, either in turn based or real time mode (you can toggle). Steampunk setting, really great character and world building, but it does have rough edges. Do NOT go directly from the start point to the beginning town, much less the first major city. Levelling up is crucial early game aspect.