5 Best Games Like Park Story

Picture this: It’s a chilled evening, and you’re driving back home when suddenly you crash your vehicle. Instead of waking up in a hospital, you find yourself in a strange park. Your only way out is to obey the animal parliament's leadership, known as the lairds. Strange right? Not for Park Story, the immersive RPG puzzle game.

The overhead perspective game lets you wander into the eerie, haunted Scottish park and unlock the secrets. If this sounds like your cup of tea, the good news is there are more games like Park Story that delivers an exhilarating experience. So if you’re looking to expand your top-down RPG puzzle action, here are the five best games like Park Story worth checking out.

5. Path of Exile

As an exile in a dark fantasy world, you take the road less traveled, as the name suggests. In Path of Exile, the residents of Oriath are exiled to the derelict continent of Wraeclast. Wraeclast, once an enchanting paradise, has now turned into a ruin that hosts ancient gods and unwanted criminals.

You take control of an exile who wakes up on the shores of the cursed land. Developed by Grinding Gear Games, the game lets you choose which character class to play from a roster of seven. This includes Scion, Shadow, Marauder, Duelist, Templar Ranger, and Witch. Each class holds one or more attributes: dexterity, intelligence, or strength.

Path of Exile borrows a few concepts from the Diablo franchise, with critics dubbing it “free-to-play Diablo.” From a top-down view, you'll explore caves, dungeons, or the open world, fighting evils and old gods. Moreover, you can earn points in the game while completing quests for NPCs while venturing to find your way back home. Sounds exciting? Well, it is definitely worth checking out.

4. No Place for Bravery

As a Glitch Factory brainchild, No Place for Bravery is a 2D overhead perspective that tests how far you’re willing to go for those you love. Unsettling music complements the dark, foreboding open world in which the game takes place. Peril and death lurk around every corner, with violent tribes waiting to strike any foreigner.

You play as Thorn, an old, worn-out warrior who’s been out of practice. However, after his daughter is abducted, he straps on his gear and embarks on a treacherous journey through Dewr to retrieve her. Thorn is not alone in his rescue attempt. Phid, his adopted son, also joins the fray.

The game features fast-paced battles where you can parry, dodge, or launch counterattacks. Although the matches are seemingly challenging, they shouldn’t cause despair. This is because your character grows stronger with every encounter and weapon he wields. Moreover, the developers interestingly based the game on father figures' critical decisions. It examines the extent of fatherhood by discerning the point where parental obligations call for primal actions. So do you have what it takes to cross that line regarding family? There’s only one way to find out.

3. Hades

Who would have guessed the underworld has its fair share of family problems? Well, according to Supergiant Games, there’s trouble in paradise—I mean, hell. Hades follows Zagreus, the son of the leader of the underground, as he tries to get out of hell. Hades claims that an escape is impossible; however, Zagreus asks for help from his sister Nyx, a Greek goddess, and the gods of Olympus.

Seeing that his intimidating efforts do not undermine his son’s ambitions, Hades unleashes the vile monsters of the underworld to prevent his escape.

Taking on the role of Zagreus, you can defeat foes using a hack-and-slash attack. Players get a primary mode of attack and a secondary mode that depends on the weapon they wield. Moreover, you will receive gifts from Olympians, which will be instrumental in battle. However, if you die, you respawn in Hades’ house, and you have to restart your escape attempt again.

As the game progresses, you can also upgrade its difficulty by adding extra challenges. The mode known as “Pact of Punishment” can dramatically increase enemies or give powerful weapons to the bosses, such as a chariot equipped with a machine gun.

2. Diablo II

As one of the greatest games of all time, Diablo II is a sequel to the original Diablo. Events in the game follow the aftermath of its predecessor after the defeat of Diablo in the world of the Sanctuary. Activision Blizzard doesn’t just remaster the game by adding a fresh coat of paint; it’s a masterpiece rendition of the dimension between hell and heaven.

Players take control of a new hero after the dark and nefarious Diablo makes a return. Featuring a more compelling storyline than its predecessor, the events in Diablo II occur sequentially in five chapters. Each chapter follows a linear gameplay model; however, encounters in the dungeons and outdoors are generated randomly. Each chapter has a base or home where you can interact with NPCs by trading or obtaining helpful information that guides your quest.

In contrast, the game doesn’t solely build on gothic themes in each chapter like its predecessor. Instead, the chapters have varying themes or biomes. Moreover, the game lets you create your avatar from five character classes, including Necromancer, Paladin, Sorcerer, Barbarian, and Amazon.

1. Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley wins the highly underrated top-down ROG and best game like Park Story. Developed by ConcernedApe, the game follows a character who inherits a plot of land from his deceased father. With plenty of inspiration from Harvest Moon, players can grow crops, raise livestock, mine, cook, fish, and mingle with the townsfolk. 

The farming simulator cum life sun also has elements of dungeon crawling. Much of the dungeon crawling will occur during mining expeditions. Armed with an axe, you find your way underground, where you may meet monsters. The hack-and-slash system is pretty basic; however, the developers announced an upcoming expanded version of the game. Stardew Valley Expanded will feature more dungeon crawling and monsters to battle. Notwithstanding, it’s still an enthralling game that compares to Park Story.

And there you have it: the five best games like “Park Story.” Do you agree with our rankings? Are there any more games we should know about? Let us know down in the comments or over on our socials here.