Original Sin 2 is both a commercial and a fan success. It sold over 1 million copies in less than two months, and it’s one of the best RPG games of all time. It’s a tough title to compare, so all we can do is find other games like Divinity: Original Sin 2 you would like.
Selecting Games Like Divinity: Original Sin 2
We believe Original Sin 2 players would like games featuring a mix or a twist of the game’s elements:
Genre: This is a classic role-playing game (CRPG). It has turn-based battles, linear progression, a hefty character creation screen, and D&D mechanics.Combat: Original Sin 2 delivers a top-down, party-based, turn-based combat. The mechanics are complex and wide, but not overwhelming. Setting: You play in a high fantasy medieval continent with isometric graphics. The plot follows a battle between Divinity versus The Void Linear plot: The story goes by in “Acts” in a linear matter. Once you finish an Act, you can’t go back to previous regions. Freedom: Even though it’s linear, you can interact or kill almost anything in the game without sacrificing progress. Character customization: You can customize your character with stats, race, genre, and origins. You can also pick an original character.Companions: The original characters become your companions. They have a key role in the story, plus interesting personalities. Romance: Every companion is available for romance. You’re free to pick your partner via how you interact with your companions.D&D mechanics: Your character’s origin, race, genre, and class affect the story. Also, your stats and skills affect combat and interactions with NPCs. Skill customization: There’re over 200 skills and 12 skill schools. You can mix and match lots of status effects and elemental damages. Action: Action is slow-paced and tactical. Whenever you encounter enemies, turn-based combat begins. The system is deep and complex. Dynamic environments: You can interact with many elements in each area. For example, there’re explosive barrels you can use against your enemies. Co-op: You can play solo, or you can play co-op, with up to 4 players per party, either locally or online. Game Master Mode: The in-game editor allows you to play hundreds of custom-made levels, or customize your own to play and share as mods.
Other games like Divinity: Original Sin 2 should be part of the RPG family, but we’d need to look across various sub-genres to find the unique entries. Yet, we believe the key element is the squad-based combat, as everything else resorts back to it.
Games Like Divinity: Original Sin 2
Baldur’s Gate 3
Baldur’s Gate 3 is the latest game by Divinity’s creators. It’s a CRPG, a love letter to the genre, and an even better D&D game than their previous Larian entries. That’s because the dialogue, story, narrative, interests, and goals are more compelling. Play it if you want more from Larian StudiosThe story follows an invasion of Mind Flayer parasites. Your character has one in the brain, and you can either resist it or succumb to darkness. Naturally, you can customize your protagonist by choosing a race, genre, class, and more. Combat is brutal and relies on similar mechanics. There’re hundreds of skills to master, an interactive environment, and a tough AI to meet you. It’s a turn-based system, and you manage your protagonist plus three companions. Your friends can join your campaign and vice-versa as your companions (locally or online).There’s also an RNG factor influencing combat and interactions with NPCs. The system “rolls a dice” to determine the success of your party’s actions. Moreover, your choices and character build affect the story, leading to various outcomes. Overall, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a cinematic, story-driven CRPG using the Divinity 4.0 engine. It’s not ready, though, so you’d only get to play a part of the campaign (about 30 hours) until its final release.
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
Wrath of the Righteous is a massive isometric CRPG. It’s the second part of a series, but it features a stand-alone story plus a great sense of freedom for players. For example, there’re lots of options to customize the game’s challenges and systems, reason enough to test the title. You’re to lead a Crusade against a demonic invasion that threatens what remains of the nation. The main quest can take you further to complete the game, or it could take you nowhere. There’s a full voice-over for the protagonist, plus outstanding sound design and soundtrack. You can create a character by choosing one of the 25 classes and 12 races. And as you level up, you’ll have available hundreds of spells., abilities, and feats to suit your playstyle. Combat happens in turns, but it can also happen in real-time – you can switch on the fly for slow or fast-paced gameplay. The RNG mechanics are present as well. It affects the success of your skills in combat and interactions with NPCs. RNG is equal to your entire party of six characters – there’re over ten companions ready to join the cause. On top of that, you manage military troops on turn-based / grid-based combat to conquer land.The goal is clear, you have multiple ways to follow it. Your campaign affects the entire nation, your companions, and the NPCs you meet in the semi-open world. The consequence mechanics are deep.
Solasta: Crown of the Magister
Crown of the Magister is a classic role-playing video game. In particular, it follows the rules of the 5th Dungeons & Dragons tabletop edition. Baldur’s Gate 3 also follows the rule-set.Naturally, it has a tactical turn-based and squad-based program. The plot happens in post-apocalyptic fantasy land. You create a four-adventurer party and search for powerful artifacts that could heal the land.You can either create your unique characters or use the presets. Regardless, original characters become companions and feature strong personalities, unique skills, key roles, and romance options. Speaking of which, the dice of the rolls affects every party member. It influences your success in interactions and battles. The game happens in isometric mode. Moreover, exploration includes climbing, jumping, and flying around obstacles. The environment is interactive as well, so, for example, you can push people, throw things at enemies, use the high ground, or escape bigger enemies through smaller passages. Lastly, like Original Sin 2, the game features an in-game editor. It allows you to create dungeons and campaigns to play and share as mods. The editor makes it easy to customize heroes, NPCs, dialogue, and more.
Expeditions: Rome
Expeditions: Rome is a tactical party-based RPG game. It features classical turn-based combat, but it happens in a Roman setting that mixes historic and fictional events.You play as Legatus, and you’re investigating who murdered your father. The journey takes many twists and turns, for example, leading a legion across Gaul, North Africa, and Greece. Similarly, you manage various war mechanics like a camp, conquer, exploit, and troops.The open-world covers Greece, Gaul, and Rome. Your actions may influence the fate of each nation. Moreover, you can pursue the quest by strength, persuasion, or money. Beware, though, as the consequences are far-reaching. Legatus is a customizable avatar. You set the genre, aesthetics, class, and skills. Moreover, you decide the classes for your companions out of warrior types. Each is necessary for combat, and you have five unique companions for your party. Combat is complex and includes many aspects, like weapon types, cover, and more. Outside of the action, the world and the plot are equally immersive. It revolves around politics and family drama through a fully-voiced narrative.
Wartales
Wartales is an open-world RPG with squad-based / turn-based combat. You lead a mercenary group in a quest for wealth and glory in a medieval setting. So, gameplay revolves around exploration, combat, collecting bounties, and raiding tombs and dungeons.The plot happens in the fictional Edoran Empire. The nation fell into a plague. Amid the chaos, thieves, bandits, and mercenaries ravaging across the land. You’re one of these, searching for loot in a land where honor is a long-lost virtue. So, you explore the world in isometric detail. The mountains, forests, villages, deserts, mines, camps, and ruins feature outstanding visuals. The main quests are contracts asking you to defend and liberate citizens or bandits. Yet, the story is open-ended, and you may lead it on various paths. Combat is turn-based as you control the squad on a grid against the enemies. The tactical part comes because each companion has unique skills, specializations, and weapon preferences. Lastly, the character progression and crafting systems deliver an enhanced combat experience. So, pick it up if you want more focus on combat and less on the plot.
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire
PoEII: Deadfire has some key differences with DoSII, but fans constantly compare these two games. See, Deadfire is an open-world isometric RPG with classic elements, real-time combat, and a pause option for tactical action. And if you’re going to choose it, choose for its combat.As the game is open-world, you can plan your own course and explore the campaign in any order. You can discover areas, interact with NPCs, and complete quests in every port you find. Also, your companions have personal quests that open as you develop relationships with them.The plot sets you pursuing a rogue God on land and sea. You’re the captain of a ship and the ship of the game’s central hub. From the hub, you choose where to go in the vast Deadfire archipelago. As you explore the world, your actions influence the setting, as well as your character and your companions. There’re also D&D mechanics in the game. In essence, your character stats influence success in combat and interactions. There’re also RNG mechanics, but they are lighter than what you’d see in the Divinity series. Lastly, combat is real-time, but you can also pause to command your entire party. The action is solid, consistent, and relies on the customization of the available 11 classes. One of the best additions is the ability to customize AI companions’ behavior during combat, like “forbidding” a skill.
Disco Elysium – The Final Cut
Disco Elysium is a detective role-playing game with hand-painted visuals and an open-world map. We choose the Final Cut, which is the latest edition that adds new quests and content to the boundary-pushing title.You play as two detectives on an experience completely without action. The experience is about interacting with the map, suspects, and other NPCs to solve a massive crime in the city. Alternatively, you can chill with side missions, booze, and adult entertainment. As a full-on RPG game, you can choose your path. That means your build and actions determine the story and the outcome. You can progress as a hero, or as a chaotic disaster. It depends on the skills, and your “skills” depend on your thoughts, actions, and mid capacities.And as you level, you gain the ability to convince others through various means. That includes violence, pottery, dance competitions, philosophy, and more. You can mix and match 24 skills, on top of clothes, tools, drugs, and passive buffs. Lastly, the music, story, art, and voice-acting deliver a memorable experience. If you’re an adult, and you find it hard to surprise or fascinate yourself with a game nowadays, Disco Elysium may change that. Try it because of how unique it is.
Fallout: Classic Collection
The original Fallout games were turn-based CRPG titles. You can buy the Fallout: Classic Collection, which bundles the first two games plus a spin-off. As CRPGs, your character stats, perks, traits, and interactions with the world and the environment. So, you create a character and customize various aspects that influence the campaign, and the outcome. In fact, your stats -the SPECIAL stats- even influence how you talk, behave, trade, and fight. Both games happen in a post-apocalyptic world after a nuclear war devastated the planet. Each entry is a stand-alone story featuring a rising hero of the wasteland. Your choices, though, may not lead you to a heroic path. Regardless, the tone on either entry is absurd, dark, and offset. Combat happens in turns, where you use a series of melee and firearms to defeat mutants, beasts, and other humans. The world is open, but your exploration depends on how strong you are to visit an area. Each area is full of compelling side quests, characters, and lore to discover.Lastly, these games shine because of their tone and storytelling. The character builds are not as deep as you’d see in the Divinity series, but the NPC interaction makes up for it. The amount of freedom you’ve got to approach every situation and explore is the best part of the experience.
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins is a sword and sorcery RPG. It has classic elements, real-time combat, and isometric graphics. Unlike Original Sin 2, the setting is much deeper, so the game relies a lot on a dialogue wheel, voice-acting, and cinematics.You customize a character with race, sub-race, gender, class, and aesthetics. Your choices determine your introductory mission, and open or close key choices and events during the campaign. There’re no RNG mechanics regarding character interaction, though. The plot is about becoming a member of the Gray Warden guild to defeat a demonic invasion. It happens in a non-linear manner, as you can choose the quests you want to complete from your camp. Each quest happens in self-contained linear areas with some freedom to explore and interact.As for character builds, you choose a subclass, trade gear, and unlock dozens of skills. That said, you travel alongside three companions and fight in real-time. However, you can pause the game at any time to issue commands to your party.Lastly, there’s a complex menu to customize how your companions act during combat. You can determine rules from when and why they use their abilities, like a healing spell, or a rebuffing arrow. That said, you can build relationships with your companions, which include romances, friendships, and rivalries.
Wasteland 3
Fallout’s original creators, members of the Interplay Studio, founded inExile. The newer studio created the Wasteland trilogy as the spiritual successor of Fallout. So, these are turn-based, top-down, squad-based games.The third part is the best entry. You play as a leader of a Desert Ranger squad, but you also control the 5 companions for battles and interactions. Your job is to restore order in the state to help the self-proclaimed Colorado Patriarch. And you can do it online, or co-op with three players online. The mission can go in many ways. The main quests set you searching for Patriarch’s outlaw sons on different map areas. You can travel to any area, in any order, but you need to improve the “tank” you use to explore the open-world highway that connects each main or side map.The game begins by creating a Ranger or choosing an original character. Your stats and perks influence your interactions with NPCs and the environment. However, you create as many characters as you want, and make them a part of your party. There’s no protagonist, and death is permanent.Combat happens in turns. Each team has a turn to move, use abilities or items, or attack on a grid map. Combat is challenging but fun, as it relies on high-tech weaponry and tools. Lastly, the game’s tone is offset, absurd, and hilarious. It’s just plain fun, even though combat is much simpler than on Original Sin 2.
Weird West
Weird West is an isometric RPG with immersive sim elements, a paranormal plot, and insane skills. It’s a dark fantasy title where a group of outlaws journey to defeat fantastical creatures.The title doesn’t have turn-based combat, though. Instead, it delivers real-time action where you shoot, round-kick, and interact with all kinds of explosive barrels and deadly traps as you play. The adventure is otherworldly and unique. It feels like playing a magical Red Dead Redemption 2 with another perspective.Your decisions greatly influence the journey. Your actions forge your gameplay, as your adventures influence the world. In other words, your choices affect NPCs and companions and create events and opportunities.There’re six protagonists in the game, rather than creating an avatar. So, the story moves from one character to the other across the campaign, until everything connects in the final chapter. The final chapter can be vastly different on each gameplay, though.Lastly, as an immersive sim, the title is rich in lore and story. There’re factions, towns, and NPCs in the open world reacting to player decisions. Moreover, there’re sandbox elements that allow you to approach situations in multiple ways.
Gears Tactics
Gears Tactics is a turn-based, squad-based, and top-down title. It’s a Gear of Wars spin-off. So, the story happens 12 years before the original title, as planet Sera is falling to the alien invasion.You play as Gabe Diaz. You lead a squad on a mission to hunt down the leaders of the Locust army. The setting opens up brutal combat that feels fast and punishing, even though it happens in turns.The game has over 20 skills to master, from aura to hijacking enemy units. Combat relies on high-tech, sci-fi firearms, and plenty of explosions. The enemies are punishing and come with a wide range of abilities, forcing you to think strategically to win. Then, the plot is character-driven, but there’re no choice mechanics in the game. There’s a single story as it doesn’t have branching paths. The plot closely follows Gabe Diaz in a story about sacrifice, survival, and leadership. Still, you have the freedom to customize your squad, skills, and equipment. Combat heavily leans on upgrading skills, picking up proper gear, and moving strategically on the battlefield.
