You like RPGs, so you search for the highest-rated RPGs available now.
Sooner or later, Baldur’s Gate 3 appears.
The scores are enormous. The awards are enormous. The freedom is enormous. The more you read, the more obvious it becomes that the game matters historically.
Then the terminology begins.
D&D 5e. Ability scores. Skills. Proficiencies. Dice checks. Spell slots. Saving throws. Factions. Dialogue branches. Positioning. Environmental interactions. Multiclassing.
And one thought appears:
“I’m sure this is great. I’m just not sure I want to learn all of this right now.”
That does not mean the reviews are wrong. It does not mean you suddenly stopped liking RPGs.
It means something simpler: quality and personal fit are different variables.
1. Buying a 96-point game does not make your enjoyment 96 points
Review scores and rankings are useful.
They can tell you whether a game is broadly polished, whether its design has strong support, and whether its story, combat, music, or systems have impressed a large audience.
But a ranking mostly measures how highly a game is regarded as a work. It does not measure what you want to play tonight.
The best sushi restaurant in town does not beat curry when you specifically want curry.
Games work the same way.
Game of the Year is not a matchmaking service.
2. Baldur’s Gate 3 has very good reasons for being praised
Baldur’s Gate 3 is set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons and uses a turn-based combat system based on the D&D 5e ruleset. Larian emphasizes freedom to explore, experiment, interact with the world, and shape the adventure through choices.
Its strength is not merely “good story.”
You can:
- talk your way through a problem,
- fight,
- sneak,
- take high ground,
- manipulate objects,
- use character skills to open new solutions,
- choose allies and enemies,
- and live with consequences that return later.
The more you understand the rules, the more options you can see.
The more you think, the more the game gives back.
Instead of discovering the one solution the designer wants, you often try to make your own solution work inside the world.
That is powerful design.
Its reputation makes sense.
3. The same strengths can make the entrance feel heavy
There is a catch.
The freedom of BG3 also means there are many systems that become more rewarding as you understand them.
You look at attributes, skills, spells, equipment, dialogue options, elevation, enemy positions, surfaces, objects, and sometimes a suspicious barrel that looks extremely flammable.
For the right player, that is a feast.
But sometimes you want to start an RPG, not begin the final boss fight against the instruction manual.
The useful conclusion is not “complex games are bad.”
It is: this is not the kind of cognitive load I want right now.
4. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 comes from a different direction
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is also a highly rated RPG, but its entry point is different.
The developers describe its combat as reactive turn-based.
You choose commands during your turn, as in a traditional turn-based RPG. But while enemies attack, you remain active: dodging, parrying, and countering in real time. Your own attacks can include timed inputs, and free-aim lets you target weak points.
In other words:
Turn-based time for decisions. Action-game feedback for execution.
You keep the pleasure of planning your next move.
But an enemy turn is not automatically a permission slip to look at your phone.
That combination can appeal to players who like turn-based RPGs but want more physical involvement.
5. The premise also gets to the point quickly
The central hook is easy to understand.
Once a year, the Paintress paints a number on a giant monolith.
People at or above that age disappear.
The number decreases every year.
Next, she will paint “33.”
So Expedition 33 leaves to kill the Paintress.
The world is inspired by Belle Époque France, giving the game a visual identity that is immediately distinct from standard medieval fantasy.
Before you memorize twenty proper nouns, you already know the mission.
That is a strong onboarding advantage.
6. The ratings were still extremely strong in September 2026
When checked on September 27, 2026, Expedition 33 had roughly 91–92% positive recent Steam reviews. Its English reviews were about 96% positive across more than 100,000 reviews, while Japanese reviews were about 85% positive.
Baldur’s Gate 3 was also still extraordinary: about 95% positive in recent Steam reviews and 96% positive across roughly 450,000 English reviews.
The interesting part is not that both are acclaimed.
It is that two games can sit in the same “extremely positive” neighborhood while asking very different things from the player.
Scores can share a shelf.
Cognitive cost does not.
7. Five kinds of load are more useful than one score
When too many excellent RPGs exist, check these five dimensions before the rating.
1. Rules load
How much system knowledge is required before the game becomes satisfying?
In BG3, understanding rules expands freedom.
Expedition 33 has substantial build depth, but its basic combat loop is easier to see immediately.
2. Input load
Do you want to deliberate, react, or do both?
Expedition 33 explicitly mixes command selection with real-time defensive inputs.
3. Dialogue and exploration load
How central do you want conversations, branching choices, and exploratory problem solving to be?
In BG3, talking is often part of the mechanics, not decoration.
4. Freedom load
More freedom is not automatically better.
One hundred options also means the job of choosing among one hundred options.
Freedom is delicious, but a menu can eventually become a phone book.
5. Restart load
How quickly can you return after a week away?
A game that requires you to remember your build, alliances, quests, and half-finished plans can have a high restart cost.
For many adults, the true final boss is not a dragon.
It is “What was I doing last time?”
8. Use rankings as candidate generators, not buy buttons
A better way to use rankings is:
- collect candidates from the top,
- watch five minutes of combat,
- watch a little early-game footage,
- read negative reviews,
- ask whether those complaints are actually complaints for you.
Negative reviews are especially useful.
“Too much dialogue” may sound like a recommendation.
“Parrying is too important” may sound like exactly what you wanted.
Do not only count positive and negative votes.
Look at what the reviewer is reacting to.
9. BG3 and Expedition 33 are not a ladder; they are different doors
A rough comparison looks like this:
| Experience you want | More natural fit |
|---|---|
| Change the world through dialogue and choices | BG3 |
| Dig into D&D rules and character builds | BG3 |
| Plan battles before initiative begins | BG3 |
| A clearer classic-RPG adventure path | Expedition 33 |
| Turn-based decisions with active enemy turns | Expedition 33 |
| Dodging and parrying inside an RPG structure | Expedition 33 |
| A fast visual and narrative hook | Expedition 33 |
Feeling that BG3 is too heavy does not mean RPGs are not for you.
Finding Expedition 33 easier to enter does not mean it is shallow.
The complexity lives in different places.
10. A high score is not an order to play
If a universally praised game does not immediately attract you, there is no reason to treat that as a failure of taste.
Ratings are signals of quality.
Fit is the match between you and the experience design.
Those are different.
You can read about BG3 and think, “That sounds incredible, but not today.”
Then you can see Expedition 33 and think, “Now that looks fun.”
That is not ignoring reviews.
That is using rankings correctly: generate good candidates, inspect the design, and choose the experience you actually want.
The #1 RPG is not your king.
It does not have jurisdiction over your next hundred hours.
