Incline Butthurt Historian: The ultimate historical RPG list

[Bruma Hobo]

AKA the shortest list ever.



Historical games (no fantasy elements other than some over-the-top action and adventure):
50 Mission Crush (1984): Turn-based RPG/strategy hybrid about being a B-17 pilot during WW2.
Sid Meier's Pirates! (1987): Not really an RPG, but it's a great open-world adventure game with limited character customization options.
Sword of the Samurai (1989): RPG/arcade/strategy hybrid set in Sengoku era Japan.
Uncharted Waters (1991) and Uncharted Waters: New Horizons (1994): A couple of Sid Meier's Pirates! Japanese clones with stats.
A Legionary's Life (2019): Soldier simulator set in times of the Second Punic War.



Some fantasy elements (historical games with a bit of magic, like potions or the ocassional mythical foe):
The Hound of Shadow (1989): Interactive Fiction game with character customization options, set in 1920's London.
Expeditions: Conquistador (2014): RPG/strategy hybrid about exploring the Americas and killing natives.
Expeditions: Viking (2017): A more traditional CRPG than its predecesor, with vikings. FUS RO DAH!
Kingdom Come: Deliverance (2018): Skyrim killer set in XV century Bohemia.
Expeditions: Rome (2022): Probably like A Legionary's Life, but worse.



Fantasy games set in the real world (games with all sorts of magical creatures and spells):
Danse Macabre (1986): A terrible Ultima clone set in 1476 in Britain, at least according to the CRPGAddict.
Darklands (1992): Open world RPG set in XV century Holy Roman Empire, but with dwarves and dragons.
Nethergate (1999): An Avernum clone by Jeff Vogel set in Roman Britannia.


I've not played them all, so let me know if I miscategorized something, or if there are games missing from the list.

 

[Comte]

Darklands the rest of this list is for chomos

 

[Lord_Potato]

Unorus Janco Man, they're many more historical (or quasi-historical) rpgs out there. I remember here on the Codex we compiled a much longer list.

Also, Sid Meier's Pirates is not an rpg.

 

[Lord_Potato]

Ok, here is a longer list from this thread :

Historical rpgs:
- Alexander: the Heroes Hour (ancient Greece and Persia during the reign of Alexanderthe Great)
- Legionary's Life (ancient Rome during the Punic and Macedonian wars)
- Teudogar and the alliance with Rome (ancient Germania during Roman attempt of conquest)
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance (medieval Bohemia)
- Sea Dogs (XVI century, era of Carribean piracy)
- Vendetta: Curse of the Raven's Cry (XVII century, era of Carribean piracy)
- Kim (XIX century colonial India)
- Hammer & Sickle (early cold war Germany)

Historical rpgs with mystical/mythical elements:
- Five Guardians of David (hack&slash in Biblical Israel)
- Prince of Qin (ancient China + magic)
- Seal of Evil (prequel to Prince of Qin)
- Unrest (ancient India + magic)
- Theseus: journey to Athens (ancient mythological Greece)
- Rise of the Argonauts (mythical Greece, no actual connection to actual place, for example Delphi is an island)
- Nethergate and Nethergate Ressurection (Jeff Vogel's vision of ancient Britain during the Roman conquest, with magic)
- Expeditions: Viking (medieval Denmark and England)
- Darklands (medieval Germany with witches and demons)
- Bastard of Kosignan (5 module campaign for Neverwinter Nights, medieval Burgundy, Germany and France with some degree of magic)
- Expeditions: Conquisador (XVI century America)
- Age of Pirates: the Carribean Tales, Age of Pirates 2: City of Abandoned Ships (XVI century, era of Carribean piracy, with fantasy elements like the undead)
- Dark Secrets of Africa (XIX century in colonial Africa, search for the mysteries of the pyramids and more)
- Another War 1&2 (2nd World War + occult activities of the nazis+weird humor)
- Grom: Terror in Tibet (2nd World War, nazis searching for ancient artifacts of power in Asia)

Pseudohistorical rpgs with weird shit (aliens, worldwide conspiracy theories, space artifacts):
- Assassin's Creed: Origins (ancient Egypt)
- Assassin's Creed: Odyssey (ancient Greece)
- Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (medieval Scandinavia and England)

 

[RunningWolf]

Expedition: Viking is full fantasy and in no way historical unless you studied history through Netflix. Its about as historical as AC: Valhalla. Im not going to bother to break it down in depth, i just quote a part of my review:

"There's not a single shred of hard evidence that "shield-maidens" existed in the real world.

A woman burred with weapons can have a thousands of other explanations, like being brave and defending herself or her family from a rapist or a wild animal. Or she could've been burred with her husband things if he drowned or died on a raid. It doesn't mean women never fought to protect their families when men were away. They did, but there's no hard evidence they were ever trained or served in combat roles in Viking society. Siege of Dorostolon to which all apologists point out had no Vikings in it. Sviatoslav I grandfather was a Viking but he himself was a Russian ruler of the Rus people. We have good accounts of Rus military history and women did not serve in combat. The sally during the siege was a desperate attempt of starving people, likely comprised from volunteers, some of whom were starving women. It doesn't in any way confirm anything about Vikings and roles of women in war.
If you have interest in this topic read Professor Judith Jesch. Which you would expect the people who make the game about the Vikings would do. Instead they chose to make a Viking TV series game and slap a historical tag on it."

 

[vazha]

Ok, here is a longer list from this thread :

Historical rpgs:
- Alexander: the Heroes Hour (ancient Greece and Persia during the reign of Alexanderthe Great)
- Legionary's Life (ancient Rome during the Punic and Macedonian wars)
- Teudogar and the alliance with Rome (ancient Germania during Roman attempt of conquest)
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance (medieval Bohemia)
- Sea Dogs (XVI century, era of Carribean piracy)
- Vendetta: Curse of the Raven's Cry (XVII century, era of Carribean piracy)
- Kim (XIX century colonial India)
- Hammer & Sickle (early cold war Germany)

Historical rpgs with mystical/mythical elements:
- Five Guardians of David (hack&slash in Biblical Israel)
- Prince of Qin (ancient China + magic)
- Seal of Evil (prequel to Prince of Qin)
- Unrest (ancient India + magic)
- Theseus: journey to Athens (ancient mythological Greece)
- Rise of the Argonauts (mythical Greece, no actual connection to actual place, for example Delphi is an island)
- Nethergate and Nethergate Ressurection (Jeff Vogel's vision of ancient Britain during the Roman conquest, with magic)
- Expeditions: Viking (medieval Denmark and England)
- Darklands (medieval Germany with witches and demons)
- Bastard of Kosignan (5 module campaign for Neverwinter Nights, medieval Burgundy, Germany and France with some degree of magic)
- Expeditions: Conquisador (XVI century America)
- Age of Pirates: the Carribean Tales, Age of Pirates 2: City of Abandoned Ships (XVI century, era of Carribean piracy, with fantasy elements like the udead)
- Dark Secrets of Africa (XIX century in colonial Africa, search for the mysteries of the pyramids and more)
- Another War 1&2 (2nd World War + occult activities of the nazis+weird humor)
- Grom: Terror in Tibet (2nd World War, nazis searching for ancient artifacts of power in Asia)

Pseudohistorical rpgs with weird shit (aliens, worldwide conspiracy theories, space artifacts):
- Assassin's Creed: Origins (ancient Egypt)
- Assassin's Creed: Odyssey (ancient Greece)
- Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (medieval Scandinavia and England)

This man knows what he is talking about.
I d add Omerta and Shadow Tactics. Both have enough rpg elements about them to qualify.
Oh and Mount & Blade : Warband with its legion of addons / mods too.

 

[AdolfSatan]

He forgot The Tangut Profecy.

 

[curds]

What about Another War?

BG style game set during WW2. Never played it, though.

 

[curds]

He forgot The Tangut Profecy.

It is said that saying the name of this game brings bad fortune.

 

[Lord_Potato]

What about Another War?

BG style game set during WW2. Never played it, though.

It's bad due to broken combat. You have to click for each shot and enemies run around like crazy so it's not just a clickfest, it's crazy fast and tiresome clickfest. Also the story sucks and the humor starts okay but then then falls on its nose.

 

[V_K]

The Council is enough RPG to make it on the list.
Defender of Boston, an obscure RPG/Adventure, is set in Lovecraftian 1920s, which is historica enough.
Venetica could be added to "Fantasy RPGs set in real world" section since it's technically set in 15th century Venice. There's not much historical about it beyond some location names and some political titles though.
Space 1889, if alternative history qualifies.

 

[Sranchammer]

It's all shit

 

[Lord_Potato]

Kingdom Come is great!

 

[Falksi]

Pirates! Or Darklands for sure.

Didn't take to KCD, but might have to give it another go.

 

[ropetight]

Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader was Diablo/RPG hybrid in fantasy/alternate history Europe and historic NPCs like Leonardo DaVinci.
Too bad the combat was awful.

 

[Mauman]

I'm actually kinda shocked that Darklands is getting a lot of votes.

It has many, MANY mystical elements. Including dwarves, dragons, and the big bad devil himself.

Note - I'm not calling it a bad game. I'm just saying that it really shouldn't count as a "historical" rpg as there's PLENTY of fantasy in it.

Also, same as the expedition series, it suffers from politically correct history.

 

[Lady Error]

Plebs do not appreciate Uncharted Waters enough. Admittedly, it is hardly an RPG, but way better than Pirates! in my opinion.

 

[Ol' Willy]

Stop calling Asd Creed an RPG

 

[Ol' Willy]

Also, obviously, Silent Storm trilogy

 

[Stella Brando]

Assassin's Creed: Black Flag

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Plebs do not appreciate Uncharted Waters enough. Admittedly, it is hardly an RPG, but way better than Pirates! in my opinion.

Can you fight man to man on sea and on land?

 

[Lady Error]

Plebs do not appreciate Uncharted Waters enough. Admittedly, it is hardly an RPG, but way better than Pirates! in my opinion.

Can you fight man to man on sea and on land?

You can fight captain to captain, I think. Don't remember if there are land battles, probably not.

 

[ELEXmakesMeHard]

No Legends of Eisenwald

 

[Bruma Hobo]

Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader was Diablo/RPG hybrid in fantasy/alternate history Europe and historic NPCs like Leonardo DaVinci.
Too bad the combat was awful.

That's an alternate reality setting, and no more historical than Ultima: Martian Dreams in my opinion. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Plebs do not appreciate Uncharted Waters enough. Admittedly, it is hardly an RPG, but way better than Pirates! in my opinion.

Looks like an RPG to me, way more than most JRPGs actually.

 

[Bruma Hobo]

Gotta say I'm glad that Expeditions: Conquistador is kicking Viking's ass.

Also, I think Nethergate is a cool game, but I have no idea why it is doing so well. I've only played the Resurrection re-release, so perhaps the original version is actually the superior one?