An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre. These games emphasize real-time combat where the player has direct control over the characters as opposed to turn or menu-based combat while still having a focus on the character's Stats in order to determine relative strength and abilities.
In this article, Gurugamer is going to showcase the 4 best ARPGs for low end PC in 2023.
1. Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana
The story has Adol and Dogi (the constant duo of the Ys series) get shipwrecked near a mysterious island. Everyone washes up ashore and your job is to build a base of operations, rescue all the other castaways, and try to find a way off the island. The whole game takes place on this island, but there are many biomes and varied locales.
The combat is a solid variation of the old Zelda formula, somewhat similar to games like Dark Souls and Code Vein but much faster. You have a target lock, sprinting, dodge rolls and parries and many combat skills (you can equip up to 4 at the same time), there's also jumping (and double jumping) and some aerial moves. Normally you try to execute perfect dodges or parries (the former give you slow-mo for a limited time and the latter change all your attacks to criticals), basic attacks fill up your Spirit (SP) bar which you then use to spam skills. There's also an EXTRA gauge that slowly builds up and can be used to execute powerful fullscreen attacks. It's a deceptively simple system but works very well.
You get a party of 3 and can swap between characters at any time. Each of the characters uses one of the 3 damage types: slash, pierce and strike, meaning some characters are more effective against certain enemies although enemy weaknesses are not that big of a deal and you don't have to switch all the time. There's also a stun bar on each enemy that slowly fills up depending on certain conditions and some enemies have additional armor that can be broken.
2. Bastion
Bastion operates under a clear design to offer the player as much freedom as possible to choose their own playstyle. Almost entirely focused on hack'n'slash combat, it presents new weapons and means to dispose of your enemies on a near constant basis. Mixing and matching these weapons and abilities is what allows you to tailor the game to your own playstyle, from melee and ranged weapons, to a near endless variety of passive upgrades and power-ups. Whatever you choose you're never locked into any one upgrade path, which lets you freely experiment to find what works best for you.
The combat itself is extremely simple but meticulously balanced and refined to feel satisfying and as challenging as you want to make it. It excels at creating a constant feeling of progression, even past the point of finishing the game as you can then playthrough it again in new game plus mode to catch any upgrades you missed, or take on even bigger challenges.
This almost doesn't matter though, in the face of Bastion's astonishing presentation. The flow of tiles building the path in front of you venture through the world, the gorgeous art design that overflows with vibrancy and creativity, and the unbelievable soundtrack that blends an astonishing amount of styles into a sound that's unlike anything I've ever heard.
3. Grim Dawn
Grim Dawn is an ARPG very similar in style to games such as Diablo 2, Torchlight and Titan Quest. The thing that really separates this game from other ARPGs on the market is the sheer amount of customization available to the player. The class system works by combining two masteries on a single character. Each mastery has its own skill tree and is suited to a particular playstyle. For example, the Nightblade mastery is suited to a dual wield melee playstyle, while Arcanist is suited to a more traditional caster playstyle. If you were to select both classes at once, your class would become a Spellbreaker and you would have access to both Nightblade and Arcanist skill trees at the same time.
Each mastery has a certain amount of overlap with others, so it's possible to create a caster character even if one of your masteries is more melee suited. As of the latest expansion, there are 36 class combinations available and all classes have at least one (if not more) viable builds at endgame.
Layered on top of the class system is the Devotion constellation. This is a second character advancement system that is common to all classes and masteries. You earn devotion points by cleansing shrines scattered throughout the world of Grim Dawn. Progression in the devotion system is based on certain constellation affinities. By filling in constellations, further constellations are unlocked based on similar affinities to others.
On top of the class system, players also have access to components and augment to further customize their characters. Components serve the same functions as gems/runes in Diablo 2. They are attached to armor directly and can grant stat boosts, resistances and even skills depending on the component.
4. Dark Souls
Dark Souls is easily one of the best ARPGs ever created in the last 20 years. A beautiful, varied and interconnected world, a good sense of risk and reward, well-designed levels, and boss fights. It feels very long and you will probably want to take a break for a while, but at the same time you'll want more and you'll just want to go ahead and try to kill the bad guy that made you rage over and over again. Some argue that the second half of the game suffers from a lack of time and a kind of rushed feeling to areas like Lost Izalith and The Tomb of the Giants.
For a true Dark Souls experience, you are gonna want to pick a build early. The starting classes help, giving you more points in a certain category, like Strength, Dexterity, or Vitality depending on your starting class. You will want to use levels from souls to help form your build.
The real part of Dark Souls is the Bosses. They are what the game is known for, and the game would be wildly different without them. Without spoiling too much, some of the bosses in this game have become my all-time favorites. 3 of the 4 DLC bosses and the boss at the end of Anor Londo are the true contenders.
>>> Read more: Top 5 Best Post-Apocalyptic Games On PC (2023)
Comments