Best RPG From Each Year Of The PS4’s Life

Highlights

• 2016 brought
  Dark Souls 3
  , a challenging action RPG with an epic story, continuing From Software’s popularity.
• Nier: Automata
  wowed players in 2017 with intense gameplay and a compelling story that rivals classic RPG titles.
• In 2022,
  Elden Ring
  stole the spotlight with being not only one of the greatest RPGs for the PS4, but also the Game of the Year.

The PlayStation 4 has been a popular console ever since its initial release near the end of 2013. Ever since then, players have been able to enjoy plenty of phenomenal games on the console, with many games continuing to be published on this older generation of gaming even when the PlayStation 5 was released.

With various genres released on the PS4, one of the most popular was role-playing games. These titles continued to be published every year of the PlayStation 4’s life, and therefore, these are by far the best RPGs that players enjoyed for every year that the PS4 provided an enjoyable gaming experience for players.

10 2014 – Transistor

Metascore: 83

Although there were few PS4 titles to release during the original release year of the console in 2013, by 2014, players had a variety of RPGs to enjoy. However, out of all those available, by far the most loved action RPG of the year was Transistor. Players were free to explore a sci-fi-themed world brought to them by the creators of an equally loved title known as Bastion.

Playing Transistor on a console made for a great experience as this futuristic world looked beautiful on the bigger screen, while the fighting itself felt responsive through a controller, not to mention the atmospheric story that was told through adventuring in this RPG.

9 2015 – Bloodborne

Metascore: 92

Dark Souls is a well-known From Software Action RPG franchise. However, in 2015, players who owned a PS4 found themselves treated to an exclusive game that has had many players begging for a PS5 remake of the title. Bloodborne is set in a gothic world that plays just like other souls-like titles.

They are required to explore a linear world and defeat grotesque bosses in the hopes of saving their skin against the disease that sees the city of Yharnam decay around them. With three endings available to achieve in Bloodborne, also had many players replaying the title with new builds to experience all its incredible content.

8 2016 – Dark Souls 3

Metascore: 89

Unsurprisingly, the following year after the release of Bloodborne saw From Software rise to popularity again as 2016 marked the year that the third Dark Souls title was released. Players were once again thrown into an action RPG filled with challenging foes and an epic story that can only be discovered through making progress.

Alongside these usual experiences, the PlayStation 4 console allowed Dark Souls 3 to be truly a beautiful game alongside its challenges as players adventure to various areas of the Kingdom of Lothric, defeating the dead that have arisen there during the coming of the Age of Dark.

7 2017 – NieR: Automata

Metascore: 88

As seen, the majority of the RPGs that were the most popular and highly rated for the PlayStation 4 console were those that were action RPGs. This continued to be the case in 2017 when Platinum Games released another challenging title for players called NieR: Automata.

Besides the intense gameplay that saw players attempting combat again and again, many players had high praise for the deeply compelling story that rivaled classic RPG titles. This classic RPG experience begins to twist into a much darker tale as players learn more about the androids 2B, 9S, and A2 while they attempt to reclaim their dystopia from powerful machines.

6 2018 – Monster Hunter World

Metascore: 90

Monster Hunter is an RPG franchise that has been incredibly popular over the years. However, in 2018, the franchise saw an influx of an entirely new audience of players when Monster Hunter World was released on platforms like the PlayStation 4. Players were once again tasked with defeating the various monsters of Monster Hunter while also having various large maps to explore that showed what Capcom deemed the natural habitats of those monsters they had created.

Monster Hunter World was also a brilliant title to enjoy with others, which encouraged players to help the community in taking down various creatures in both normal tasks and various events.

5 2019 – Kingdom Hearts 3

Metascore: 83

Kingdom Hearts is another franchise that has garnered quite an audience for itself ever since the first RPG title was released in 2002 for the PlayStation 2. Then in 2019, players were finally able to enjoy Kingdom Hearts 3 on the PlayStation 4, as well as various other consoles.

Once again, players control Sora in his adventures as he once again, with the help of Donald Duck and Goofy, attempts to stop the Heartless from taking over the universe. Besides these two well-known Disney characters, players praised Kingdom Hearts 3 for the chance to visit plenty of other Disney and Pixar worlds where, with the aid of both old and new characters, they can put an end to the darkness.

4 2020 – Nioh 2

Metascore: 85

Even 7 years after the release of the PlayStation 4, action RPG games continued to be some of the best RPGs to be released on the console. Even if 2020 saw the release of the next generation of gaming with the PlayStation 5, Nioh 2 was an action RPG that players could purchase for either console.

While players may have had this new way of playing, Nioh 2 was still praised for being an extraordinary-looking game that pushed the PS4 to its limits while still creating a phenomenal experience for players. As well as having its own incredible bosses and battles that only improved from the original game.

3 2021 – Persona 5 Strikers

Metascore: 83

Persona is another popular RPG franchise, with Persona 5 being one of the most popular games in recent years. Besides the main franchise, there have been plenty of spin-off titles created that are related to Persona 5, such as Persona 5 Strikers, created by Omega Force. Set four months after the events of the original Persona 5, Joker and the rest of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts must work together again to stop the chances of another calamity occurring.

Unlike the usual Persona 5, which uses turn-based combat, Persona 5 Strikers has a mix of both turn-based combat during Persona fights, while regular battles replicate the gameplay of Dynasty Warriors.

2 2022 – Elden Ring

Metascore: 96

2022 saw From Software steal the spotlight again for that year as they not only created one of the greatest RPGs for the PlayStation 4 but also the Game of the Year for 2022. Elden Ring combined the action RPG mechanics that souls-like fans adored with an entirely open-world experience. Players were even able to craft various things as well as find new gear to help them in the various boss battles of the title.

Fans have never had a game like it created by From Software, which only amazed players more with how such a large and detailed game was not only available on the next generation of consoles but also the PS4.

1 2023 – Lies Of P

Metascore: 80

By 2023, the majority of RPGs have begun to dwindle that are available on the PlayStation 4 console. However, that isn’t to say that there aren’t any available. A soulslike RPG that players have been looking forward to on the next generation of consoles could also be purchased to enjoy on the PS4 too.

Lies of P was another intriguing action RPG that teleported players to a whole new world of challenges as they controlled a character heavily based on Pinocchio. The PS4 was just able to keep up with all the action available in this game.