5 Best Dungeons & Dragons Video Games of All Time, Ranked

It feels like forever since the pen-and-paper Dungeons & Dragons (D & D) game first came into the picture. Most of the ones who played the very first game are well into their adult lives. But the memories remain fresh and cherished all the same. Today, tons of D & D adaptations exist. These are novels, board games, movies, or video games set in the D & D universe, tugging right at the heartstrings of D & D fans. These are happy times for D $ D fans, I tell you. Truly happy times, indeed.

The tabletop RPG D & D game will always have a special place in our hearts. However, if you’re looking for a similar D & D experience on modern-day gaming platforms, we’ve got you covered. Not every D & D video game gets it right, whether it’s character customization, narration, gameplay, or just plain fun. But these five best Dungeons & Dragons video games of all time, ranked, come pretty close.

5. Neverwinter Nights (2002)

Before D & D-inspired video games were a thing in full swing, Neverwinter Nights came out to a wildly receptive audience. Okay, maybe it wasn’t a great single-player campaign game. If that’s what you’re looking for maybe read on to other better games for that. But in a design capacity, with players having the freedom to create their own characters, customize them, create their own campaigns as dungeon masters, and have other online friends join in the fun, new adventures were always the thing you’d never run out of.

Neverwinter Nights is a clever design program that has an extensive toolkit to create unique characters, campaigns, and even dungeons. You could appoint yourself the dungeon master and have others test your creativity skills in real-time. Of course, the 3rd D & D rule set used to create Neverwinter Nights is outdated today. The graphics too are a bit lacking. 

Thankfully, there’s an enhanced 2018 edition that offers the base game, two further improved expansions over the years, and a ton of other smaller side quests and campaign mods that should offer hundreds of hours of never-ending gameplay. For setting the standard for future D & D video games to come, Neverwinter Nights deserves a spot in the five best Dungeons & Dragons video games of all time, ranked.

4. Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara (2013)

Chronicles of Mystara is a side-scrolling beat ‘em up that compiles two of the most memorable ‘90s games: Tower of Doom and Shadow over Mystara. Together, they create a completely different game from the all-too-common RPGs. Essentially fast-paced beat-‘em-ups featuring lots of melees, ranged, and elemental attacks. 

On the other side of the arena are all sorts of opponents like bandits, trolls, dragons, and other D & D-like foes. It’s quite a challenging progressive system yet packs loads of fun. Plus, the compilation is now updated to display modern-day sharper, vibrant-looking graphics.

3. Lords of Waterdeep (2017)

Let’s face it. There’s a completely child-like joy you have when you open up the D & D tabletop game and some may simply not be ready to let go of that feeling just yet. Still, you want a D & D video game alternative and that’s exactly where Lords of Waterdeep comes in. Kicking off as a tabletop game in 2013, Lords of Waterdeep spread its wings into a board game app. 

It’s perfectly fitting when you’d like a portable D & D-like video game you could play with friends online. Set in the city of Waterdeep, players take the role of ruler of the city, scheming their way to the most influential diplomat or adventurer there is. Lords of Waterdeep represents a not-too-serious spinoff to forge new alliances and keep the most treasure whilst gaming in a, still, familiar space. 

2. Planescape: Torment (1999)

Where Neverwinter Nights is lacking, Planescape: Torment excels. The writing is impeccable, taking you along on a deeply immersive standalone journey starring The Nameless One at its core. In fact, the universe here is not of D & D’s Forgotten Realms. Instead, Planescape: Torment reinvents it into the Planescape multiverse, integrating dark humor, well-written dialogue, and beyond-fascinating journeys through the city of Sigil.

There’s also a 2017 remake for gamers who prefer up-to-date gameplay called Planescape: Torment: Enhanced Edition. Although the new edition elevates the graphics, the 1999 entry remains the OG that took the RPG genre by storm. Talk about top-notch narration, an unpredictable multiverse filled with strange creatures, and an end-goal resolve characters in the story aim towards reaching someway by the end of the campaign. Planescape: Torment is a cult classic that’s nothing short of a masterpiece.

1. Baldur’s Gate II (1995)

It’s quite tough choosing which video game from the Baldur’s Gate series deserves a spot in the best Dungeons & Dragons video games of all time. Obviously, there’s more than one we could rank here. If the 1998 Baldur’s Gate installment caused a stir in the RPG scene, the sequel, Baldur’s Gate II, caused a massive storm. Particularly because Baldur’s Gate II took everything its predecessor got right and wildly managed to elevate almost every aspect of it to a whole other level.

At the forefront is the masterful storytelling that sticks to the mind longer than the game itself. Then, the combat is engaging enough to check out the side-quests also. The gameplay is so good that other games like Planescape: Torment and Icewind Dale replicate the recipe going forward to stand as incredible D & D games on their own two feet. 

While the first entry that catapulted the start of a highly successful franchise deserves credit, Baldur’s Gate II threw it out of the park when it incorporated reviews and fan feedback, making a comeback from what was already perfect. Feel free to check out Baldur’s Gate II, the 2013 enhanced edition, as well as other notable entries like Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance and Baldur’s Gate III.

So what’s your take? Do you agree with our five best Dungeons & Dragons video games of all time, ranked? Are there more Dungeons & Dragons video games we should know about? Let us know down in the comments or over on our socials here.