Summary
- Some great tabletop games capture the essence of video game sources, creating unique experience for fans & newcomers.
- Tabletop RPGs translate interesting game worlds to a cooperative campaign experience.
- Some board games offer intense survival challenges, while others are less stressful.
From RPG translations. It's not uncommon for video games to come out of the tabletop space, but what's particularly interesting is when things go in the other direction. Despite a few breakout hits, these titles generally attract much less cultural attention than their video game counterparts, but many are strong in their own right.
The best tabletop versions of video games carry over memorable elements of their source material without feeling completely bound to what came before, inviting both fans and newcomers to enjoy. The things that make a tabletop game fun are fundamentally different from the ones that make video games tick, but careful design can make them feed into each other well.
10 The Dragon Age RPG Isn't Just A D&D Clone
A Gateway to Thedas for Tabletop Enthusiasts
DnD might be ruling the video game RPG space again with Baldur's Gate 3, but for a time, the most natural successor to that legacy was the Dragon Age series. The Dragon Age RPG brought that world back to tabletop RPG play, offering an experience that's fast to learn for anyone trying to enter the tabletop space with it. Although the classic fantasy flavor might be harder to distinguish from DnD at first glance, diving in shows how much is significantly different.
Dragon Age: Best Class To Pick In Each Game
There are three primary classes to choose from in every Dragon Age game, and each one comes with unique drawbacks and benefits to keep in mind.
It's worth noting that the Dragon Age RPG is generally considered much stronger at lower levels, so a campaign that ends up running for a long time might need to look at some tweaks for high-level play. It's certainly a cool way to dip into the world of Dragon Age, however, and the tabletop system reflects a lot of lore and character concepts relevant to the games.
Dragon Age
- Released
- November 3, 2009
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood, Intense Violence, Language, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content
- Developer(s)
- BioWare
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- Engine
- Eclipse Engine
- Cross-Platform Play
- n/a
- Cross Save
- n/a
- Franchise
- Dragon Age
- Platform(s)
- Xbox 360, PS3, PC, macOS
9 This War Of Mine: The Board Game Hits Hard
A Harrowing Journey Through the Shadows of War
Plenty of video games focus on war, but few attempt to cover its darkest and saddest sides in the way that This War of Mine does. It's a challenge to pull this off well in video game form, and doing it in tabletop form is even harder. This War of Mine: The Board Game somehow manages it, however, making for an experience that's unlike anything else out there.
Survival is the objective, but it isn't focused on the joy of winning like most games out there
Players in This War of Mine: The Board Game take on the identity of civilians in a besieged city, which sets up tough choices and punishing resolutions to encounter. Survival is the objective, but it isn't focused on the joy of winning like most games out there. Instead, it's all about what happens along the way, and even making it through a game can come with sacrifices that weigh heavy.
8 The Sea Of Thieves Roleplaying Game Is Pirate Silliness
Setting Sail for Lighthearted Pirate Adventures
There's something about pirates that just makes for great tabletop RPG play, and they have a real habit of sneaking into DnD games whenever things get coastal. There are also some TTRPG options for dedicated pirate play, however, and one such product is the Sea of Thieves Roleplaying Game. This uses core concepts like trading company factions and skeleton captains from the piratical video game, but its general appeal should go well beyond fans of its source material.
The Sea of Thieves Roleplaying Game is most likely to be appreciated by those wanting a simple and silly experience, as its ruleset and flavor aren't intended to be grueling. Those wanting a darker flavor might be better off looking to Pirate Borg, but if the lighthearted adventure of the Sea of Thieves Roleplaying Game sounds appealing, it's certainly easy to jump into.
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Sea of Thieves
-
- Top Critic Avg: 69/100 Critics Rec: 37%
- Released
- March 20, 2018
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Crude Humor, Use of Alcohol, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Rare
- Publisher(s)
- Microsoft Game Studios
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Platform(s)
- Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
Pirate Borg Review: Heavy Metal Buccaneering In The Dark Caribbean
Pirate Borg is a brutally fun tabletop supplement that uses Mörk Borg rules for high-seas adventures and naval combat in a dark fantasy world.
7 Dishonored: The Roleplaying Game Has Fun In Dunwall
Navigating Political Intrigue and Criminal Underworlds
The world of Dishonored offers some prime material for a tabletop RPG, with a unique aesthetic, interesting characters, and a tangle of politics that's still simple enough to be approachable. It's no surprise that it ended up being one of the main inspirations for Blades in the Dark, a TTRPG published in 2017 with a similar setting and a criminal bent. Less widely known, however, is the official Dishonored: The Roleplaying Game, which was released in 2020 by Modiphius Games.
Modiphius is also responsible for Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, one of the more well-known adaptations of a video game to the TTRPG space.
Dishonored: The Roleplaying Game features an Assassin archetype to play as, of course, but it also has options like Inventor, Miscreant, and Scholar. It should be fairly accessible to those who haven't actually played the video games, as the book includes reference materials for the setting and other key elements, but those who have already fallen in love with Dunwall and Karnaca will likely get the most out of it.
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Dishonored
- Released
- October 9, 2012
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 3
- Franchise
- Dishonored
- Platform(s)
- PS4, PS3, PC
6 Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood of Venice Offers Cool Campaigns
Bridging the Gap Between Board Games and TTRPGs
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood of Venice is a cooperative miniature board game, which puts it somewhere in between a standard board game and the campaign orientation of a TTRPG experience. There's also plenty of video game influence like a save system engineered to make chaining adventures called "memories" together with different players easy. Everything from secret hideouts to synchronization shows up in Brotherhood of Venice, so it's something that longtime Assassin's Creed fans can really appreciate.
It's Weird That Assassin's Creed Never Repeated Its Best Ezio Trick
The Ezio Trilogy had some of the most memorable games of the Assassin's Creed franchise, but Ubisoft hasn't tried the same approach since.
As the title makes clear, Brotherhood of Venice takes place what's arguably the most iconic Assassin's Creed setting, with the included tabletop elements making it possible to build up small Venetian scenes for play. The challenges that Assassins take on here focus on stealth in a way principally focused around puzzling out movement during a round, with the overall scope of progression ramping up both the challenge and the tools to address it.
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Assassin's Creed
- Released
- November 14, 2007
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Montreal
- Publisher(s)
- Ubisoft
- Engine
- anvilnext, havok, scimitar
- Sequel(s)
- Assassin's Creed 2
- Franchise
- Assassin's Creed
- Number of Players
- Single Player
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS3, Xbox 360
5 The Pillars Of Eternity TTRPG Is A Great Work In Progress
A Unique Take on Classic Computer RPG Roots
there's a fairly different approach to character and skill progression
Pillars of Eternity follows in the tradition of classic computer RPGs like Baldur's Gate and Fallout, so bringing it back around to the genre's tabletop RPG roots makes a lot of sense. The Pillars of Eternity TTRPG has more in common with Burning Wheel and Darklands than Dungeons & Dragons, however — which, for the uninitiated, means there's a fairly different approach to character and skill progression. Like the video game Avowed, it's an interesting way to have a different experience in the Pillars of Eternity universe.
There's one catch with the Pillars of Eternity TTRPG, and that's that it isn't a finished printed product. The player guide from 2019 can be found online for free, however, so that's not much of a barrier to getting started. Designer Josh Sawyer still seems to iterate on its ideas in his spare time, so there's always a possibility of an update in the future.
Pillars of Eternity - Definitive Edition
- ESRB
- m
- Developer(s)
- Obsidian Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Obsidian Entertainment
- Engine
- Unity
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo, PlayStation 4
4 Gears Of War: The Board Game Exceeds Expectations
Translating Cover Shooter Mechanics into Intense Tabletop Strategy
Gears of War might not seem like the most obvious choice for a board game adaptation, but back in 2011, it received one that turned out to be surprisingly successful. In Gears of War: The Board Game, players work cooperatively to deal with invading Locust hordes. Like Brotherhood of Venice, it makes use of miniatures and modular layouts, although it doesn't have as much in the way of larger progression elements.
In its essence, Gears of War: The Board Game manages to effectively convert cover shooter concepts to tabletop play, with positioning being a significant factor in survival. Managing resources also matters a lot, however, and it can be a surprisingly difficult experience overall. This could be a bit harder to find than the other games due to its comparative age, but anyone lucky enough to stumble across a copy should consider picking it up.
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Gears of War 4
-
- Top Critic Avg: 85/100 Critics Rec: 87%
- Released
- October 11, 2016
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- The Coalition
- Publisher(s)
- Microsoft Game Studios
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Franchise
- Gears of War
- Platform(s)
- PC
3 The Witcher TRPG Brings A Great World To Tabletop
A Richly Imagined Tabletop Adventure in the World of Geralt
The Witcher is much more than just a video game franchise, finding its roots in the novels by Andrzej Sapkowski and a freshly expanded audience in the Netflix series. The tabletop RPG, however, is specifically based on the games. The complex setting of the Continent and the clever way that The Witcher rethinks classic fantasy tropes makes for an appealing package in just about any form, and The Witcher TRPG might be one of the most natural fits.
The Witcher TRPG should be easy to pick up for veterans of the Cyberpunk series of TTRPGs, as there's a decent bit of basic similarity in how they function. Combat has a particularly engaging set of rules for those interested in learning how things operate, but there's enough to enjoy even for those who don't focus on battle. The biggest thing to watch out for is some innate class imbalance, which could definitely throw off newcomers.
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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
-
- Top Critic Avg: 93/100 Critics Rec: 95%
- Released
- May 19, 2015
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Use of Alcohol, Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content
- Developer(s)
- CD Projekt Red
- Publisher(s)
- CD Projekt Red
- Engine
- REDengine 3
- Franchise
- The Witcher
2 Frostpunk: The Board Game Is Survival Strategy
A Harrowing Journey of Survival and Sacrifice
Frostpunk is from the same developers as This War of Mine, which might help explain how both ended up being translated to the tabletop space. Frostpunk: The Board Game is another survival-focused experience, but in a less intimate way. In this case, it's all about managing a colony in a harsh setting, and there could well be a civilian cost to figuring out how to prosper.
Frostpunk: The Board Game isn't the only tabletop translation of a video game to offer solo play as an option, but it's one of the few to make it particularly appealing. Although up to four players can in on play, it might be easiest to keep it to one or two. Frostpunk: The Board Game is also a beautifully designed physical product, effectively conveying the strong art design that characterized the video game.
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Frostpunk
-
- Top Critic Avg: 86/100 Critics Rec: 92%
- Released
- April 24, 2018
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ due to Blood, Mild Sexual Themes, Mild Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- 11 Bit Studios
- Publisher(s)
- 11 Bit Studios
- Engine
- Liquid Engine
- Franchise
- Frostpunk
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5
1 Dorfromantik: The Board Game Provides Relaxing Fun
A Tranquil Blend of Strategy and Creativity
The indie game Dorfromantik is all about growing a village by placing tiles, a concept that translates exceptionally well to tabletop form. Dorfromantik: The Board Game could be a significantly less stressful alternative to Frostpunk: The Board Game, as it still deals with population requests but without the harsh survival aspects. Instead, it's all about creating a satisfying layout that meets certain core requirements, scratching both a creative and strategic itch.
Dorfromantik: The Board Game also offers a campaign experience, which unveils more complexity and growth as games progress. It's consequently easy to pick up for the first time despite ultimately having some sophisticated options, further highlighting its approachability compared to many other tabletop adaptations of board games. This may not have any gestures at high-octane action, but it fills its more comfortable niche quite well.
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Dorfromantik
-
- Top Critic Avg: 82/100 Critics Rec: 95%
- Released
- March 25, 2021
- ESRB
- e
- Engine
- Unity
- Platform(s)
- PC, Switch
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