My Top 10 RPGs with Custom Parties on PC

Hello and welcome to my personal list of favorite party-based RPGs. This list consists of games I have played and enjoyed. If games that fit the criteria are missing, it’s because I haven’t played them yet, or I disliked them. It’s that simple!

Here are the rules: The game must have custom party creation, meaning the player has to create every member of the dungeon crawling team. Furthermore, the player must retain full control over the members, in both progression and tactics during combat. That’s essentially it, so let’s get this list rolling!

---

1) Wizardry 8
The party-based dungeon crawler G.O.A.T of all time. Janky 3D that borders on ugly nowadays, but that means nothing when the party creation, interaction, combat, and general exploring is as great as it is. Sadly, it would be one of Sirtech’s final games, but also one of the best ever.

One of the standout features of Wizardry 8 is how the party comes alive through regular gameplay, with your created party members interjecting, and telling small anecdotes during the campaign. It’s just a wonderful experience, but also a tough one that will last you many hours.

2) The Temple of Elemental Evil
When this game was released, it was in a real sorry state, but people saw the raw potential. Years later, dedicated modders have essentially finished the game through Temple+ and Circle of Eight. With these mods, The Temple of Elemental Evil is a fantastic top-down D&D 3.5 experience that still remains unmatched in complexity, tactics, and above all: fun.

The only issue is that the narrative is thin. However, from a combat perspective, it is a top-notch experience. Just like Wizardry 8, it has moments of difficulty, but not something that can’t be overcome with tactics, and preparedness. 

3) Dark Sun: Shattered Lands
Dark Sun is an excellent party-based RPG set in a unique and very brutal backdrop, with an apocalyptic theme setting the tone for the whole campaign. Beyond having great D&D combat, it also has an intriguing story, with many crucial decisions forced upon the player.

So this is not just a simple tactics game—this is a true RPG. The created party might not have the personality of Wizardry 8. But in the scorching heat of the Dark Sun setting, there is no time for chit-chat, when survival is a constant thing on everyone’s mind.

4) Icewind Dale
If the sun gets too intense, there is always the cold north of Icewind Dale. Icewind Dale is a real-time top-down RPG made by the legendary Black Isle Studios. Which means the player’s in for a guaranteed good time adventuring. While being made in the same engine as the first two-story heavy Baldur’s Gate games, Icewind Dale’s focus is on combat, with a minimum of dialogue, story and roleplaying choices.

However, that is of no matter, since the adventuring is superb by itself—and it’s not like there is zero narration presented! The real-time nature of the combat can get messy at times, but as long as one of your hands rests on the spacebar for pausing, it shouldn’t be too much trouble going in for the big fights. 

5) Realms of Arkania 2: Star Trail
If the other games on this list for some reason come off as easy, welcome to the survival nightmare of Realms of Arkania 2: Star Trail. To be fair, while the game might be brutal, the suffering always comes back to the player being unprepared for the challenges of traveling. In this game, the orcs will not be the main danger, it’s the environment itself, when being cold and getting sick can spell the death of any party member.

It’s very immersive, with the focus on just staying alive, which adds a different spin on the genre. That’s not to say that the battles aren’t good and fun, because they are. The only thing that drags down the game is the pacing at places. For example: leveling the group of adventurers can take a very long time. Besides that, it’s great!

6) Eye of the Beholder
Eye of the Beholder is an old-school D&D blobber, like most of the games on this list, it’s combat focused. Don’t let the old style of pixel graphics scare you away, its fighting system is fairly deep, and follows the rules of D&D satisfyingly. If you love the fundamentals of dungeon crawling, this is the game to play—it even starts in the sewers! Can it get more classic than that?

While party creation is limited to four, more adventurers will join the cause, if the player is willing to take them in. Since the game is using a front and backline for combat, the player must make sure to place the combatants accordingly. Having the mighty paladin linger in the back, while the puny wizard tanks, is not good for business, or survival.

7) Solasta: Crown of the Magister
It was bound to happen, but here is the first D&D 5th edition based game. Not my favorite edition, yet, what Solasta: Crown of the Magister & the expansions makes of the rules is agreeable, which translates the gameplay to a fun and pleasant experience.

The thing that sets Solasta apart is the implementation of the player created dungeon crawler party. It works on a personality basis, that will be applied on the created characters based on personality traits the player picked in creation. It’s rather dynamic during play, which makes the campaign come alive, with your team talking among themselves and to other NPCs that the player meets in the world. Very Wizardry 8 in that regard; however, a bit more scripted. 

8) The Fall of the Dungeon Guardians
Our third blobber on the list, and a modern one to boot! The Fall of the Dungeon Guardians came as a surprise to me. I expected the usual indie slop, with maybe one or two cool features, but as a whole feeling lacking. I was glad to be proven wrong, seeing as it’s a well put together game with very hard, but enjoyable combat.

One thing that sets The Fall of the Dungeon Guardians apart from Legend of Grimrock is that you can pause the real-time combat, making the battles more manageable with less awkward tile-based dodging. A huge plus for me, as my mentality when it comes to blobbers is to stay and tank, or die trying! The story is not much, but it gets the job done. It’s clearly the weakest point of the game. Otherwise, it’s a party-based combat focused gem of an RPG.

9) Icewind Dale 2
While Icewind Dale 2 uses the improved D&D 3rd Edition from its predecessor’s 2nd Edition, I always felt the sequel lacked something compared to the original, despite having a more advanced system. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad game, it’s just a little less charming experience. Regardless of what game I prefer in the series, it’s more juicy party-based Forgotten Realm adventuring with combat at the forefront.

Once again, we’re back in the cold north, and this time goblins and all kinds of monsters have banded together to drive the good races out. The player, as it is, must stop them, and this is done by creating a six man strong party to slay the foes of Icewind Dale. It’s as pure as it gets, going by adventure standards. The only thing that drags the game down is a few annoying maps, like the dreaded Ice Temple. Beside that snag, it’s an enjoyable romp!

10) Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven
I’m not the biggest fan of the Might and Magic franchise, but I will have to give Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven a spot on this list. It took the important step from tile based movement and flat 2D graphics to full smooth 3D 360 based movement, and it looks and feels great. Other than the engine improvements, the game is an adventure and a half, letting the player explore the world of Enroth freely.

Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven also lets you switch between real-time and turn-based, which is surely a good thing for an elderly man like myself who prefers going slow. The main drawback is that some areas seem to be filled with endless monsters. This can become tedious in part, even if killing the forces of evil is a staple of the game. Nonetheless, it’s a legendary title that is still awesome to play today. 

---

And that ends my little RPG top 10 list. Please don’t send hate mail, or death threats, because your favorite game didn’t make it, I probably just haven’t played it yet! Jokes aside, I hope you enjoyed the list, and perhaps, you found something new to play—if you are in a party-based dungeon crawler mood, that is. Until the next list, stay tuned for more!

Thanks for reading.

– Thomas