Best Dungeons & Dragons Games To Learn The Ruleset

Best Dungeons & Dragons Games To Learn The Ruleset

• Video games inspired by D&D help familiarize players with rules, character creation, and faction dynamics for the tabletop format.
• RPGs like Baldur’s Gate 2 and Icewind Dale focus on combat, reflecting the critical element of strategy in the original tabletop game.
• Neverwinter emphasizes teamwork and party balance, essential elements for overcoming challenges in both digital and analog D&D experiences.

Dungeons and Dragons started out, and remains, a tabletop game that sees friends huddling around a table or Zoom call to tell a story of fantasy, danger, and heroism together, creating their own character, determining their origins, and fighting for their future. Such a game was ripe for the video game format, and as of now, there are hundreds of games based on or inspired by the pen-and-paper classic.

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Gamers might only be familiar with D&D through the lens of video games, and learning the analog game can be a bit daunting because of the number of rules and supplement books. Thankfully, there are games out there that can help players familiarize themselves with the rules, making it easier to transition to the tabletop format.

Baldur’s Gate 2

Players Meet Some of the Games’ Important Factions

Baldur’s Gate 2

Platform(s)PCReleasedSeptember 21, 2000Developer(s)BioWareGenre(s)RPG

Before they released Dragon Age and Mass Effect, BioWare was the company behind the excellent Baldur’s Gate and Baldur’s Gate 2, two brilliant connected RPGs based on Advanced D&D, telling the grand tales of heroism that are necessary for the tabletop game.

Along with giving some inspiration to DMs for their own stories of heroic adventures and emotional depths, players can also pick up tips and tricks for character creation, such as class, race, and even alignment, as well as meeting some of the factions they can join, and how they operate in Faerun.

Icewind Dale

Demonstrates How Combat Plays a Key Role

Icewind Dale

Platform(s)PCReleasedJune 29, 2000Developer(s)Black Isle StudiosGenre(s)RPG

A forgotten entry in the library of D&D games thanks to the Baldur’s Gate games, Icewind Dale is still a worthwhile RPG to play, and one that will impart some basic lessons regarding the IP it is based on.

Not only is it set in Icewind Dale, which acts as a key location in the Forgotten Realms and follows the story of Drizzt in the popular novels, but it also places a focus on combat, a key aspect of the tabletop game. While stories and characters are also important, D&D is a game that thrives in combat situations, as backgrounds, classes, and race can all determine where a character might shine in combat. The tactics players learn during combat in Icewind Dale are ones they can apply should they try the analog game.

Neverwinter

Teaches the Importance of Teamwork and Party Balance

Neverwinter

Platform(s)PS4, PC, Xbox OneReleasedJune 20, 2013Developer(s)Cryptic StudiosGenre(s)MMORPG

One of the most important aspects of D&D is teamwork. At its heart, it is a cooperative game where friends must work together in order to overcome the challenges and obstacles they face, as well as strengthen the bonds between the characters to facilitate quality RP. This coop element is shared with MMORPG’s, as most dungeons and bosses are nearly impossible to solo, and must be done with friends or other players who share the server.

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As such, playing the D&D-flavored multiplayer game Neverwinter is a good way to learn this lesson, as well as how to effectively coordinate their attacks and efforts with other players to overcome the challenges ahead of them. It can also help gamers learn how to create a balanced party, as both D&D and MMOs need a balance of tanks, healers, and damage dealers for the most effective party composition.

Neverwinter Nights 2

Based on 3.5e

Neverwinter Nights 2

Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, macOSReleasedOctober 31, 2006Developer(s)Obsidian EntertainmentGenre(s)Narrative, Action, RPG, Adventure, Fantasy

Neverwinter is another key location in D&D lore and a setting heavily used in the eponymous game series. Not to be confused with the MMO, this single-player RPG provides an excellent adventure set in and around the titular city as the protagonist and allies against antagonists such as the King of Shadows.

Not only does it borrow tidbits of lore, it also successfully implements the 3.5 edition of D&D, incorporating the rules for character creation outlined in that version of D&D. Although this edition is mostly obsolete with the creation of 5e and One D&D, it is still a good place to start for players who want to learn character creation rules regarding class and race. Plus, some tables still champion 3.5e as the best edition yet, so they might still get some use from knowing this rule set.

Temple of Elemental Evil

Adapts a D&D Module with the Rule Set to Match

• Platforms – PC
• Release Date – September 16th, 2003
• Developers – Troika Games
• Genre – RPG

Temple of Elemental Evil is not only the name of a D&D video game but also a module from a previous edition of the game. As such, ToEE stands out with a strong plot centering around a temple only a few miles away from a peaceful hamlet, the peace shattered by evil creatures drawn to the temple.

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The game has received high praise for the faithful implementation of the 3.5e system, giving gamers a very close experience of a D&D game, with a fleshed-out customization system for the player character and companions and the turn-based combat system. Players will not only get to experience one of WotC’s modules but one of Dungeons and Dragons systems.

Baldur’s Gate 3

Heavily Relies on the Dice-Rolling System for Most Interactions

Baldur’s Gate 3

Platform(s)Xbox Series X, PS5, PC, macOS, StadiaReleasedAugust 3, 2023Developer(s)Larian StudiosGenre(s)RPG

Baldur’s Gate 3 proves itself as a masterclass in D&D themed RPGs, praised not only for its enthralling storylines, intriguing characters and impressive range of interactions and reactions, giving video gamers a good peek into what playing D&D can be like.

Incorporating many familiar faces such as Volo and Elminister, as well as creatures, locations, and more lore than players could roll a d20 at, players will learn much of the lore and rules of D&D purely by playing the game. Though there have been some omissions, such as certain classes or spells, the clever implementation of the d20 system, which is used for nearly every interaction, teaches players the importance of the 20-sided die and how roll bonuses work.

Dungeons and Dragons

FranchiseDungeons & DragonsOriginal Release Date1974-00-00PublisherWizards of the CoastDesignerDave Arneson, E. Gary Gygax