5 Great RPGs to Pick Up on the Steam Autumn Games Sale!

1. Persona 4 Golden ($9.99)

This is an RPG you can easily put hundreds of hours into. The main story will probably take you somewhere between 60–85 hours depending on your thoroughness. The story involves several high schoolers who are unexpectedly sucked into a murder mystery, their TVs at midnight when the “midnight channel” comes on and shows dark realities, and find out more about themselves and each other than they ever could have imagined along the way! The gameplay is incredibly gripping with a core element of “monster collecting” built in, but in a way utterly fresh for those of us who are, say, Pokémon game veterans. You also have romance and relationship elements which have now become fairly common, but which largely started with the Persona series in Persona 3. At $9.99 this is an absolute steal!

You can pick it up here: Save 50% on Persona 4 Golden on Steam

2. Mass Effect Legendary Edition ($5.99)

While it’s true that the original Mass Effect trilogy had something of a controversial wrap-up, the games over-all still hold-up fairly well. The legendary edition did a lot to ensure continued access to the trilogy with some modern updates. I don’t have room to talk about all three games here, but it’s pretty uncontroversial to claim Mass Effect 2 was the best of the three. This is an excellent space-travel RPG where you take command of a ship, roam the galaxy, and ultimately try to save the day against an incredible and ancient foe. Like Persona 4, this one also has strong relationship/romance elements baked right in. While Persona 4 does have some of my personal favorite characters and relationship stories in all of gaming, Tali is also a huge highlight here in Mass Effect 2. Do yourself a favor and experience this classic trilogy for just $5.99!

You can pick it up here: Save 90% on Mass Effect™ Legendary Edition on Steam

3. Star Ocean: The Second Story R ($24.99)

When a remake of Star Ocean 2 from the PS1 was announced back in 2022, I was highly skeptical. After having gotten my hands on it, I was happy to find that my skepticism had been entirely unwarranted. This game features (in my opinion) the best implementation of the now well-known HD-2D flavor of remake graphics. Here, however, the implementation stands out because it avoids some of the unnecessary coloration issues (notably with blacks) that plagued games like Octopath Traveler (again, at least for me). It also has some of the most gorgeous sprite-work character graphics I have ever seen. The game has also been enhanced in the audio department, and the voice acting is quite good! Another thing I have always appreciated about Star Ocean games, apart from their highly unique settings/thematic components, is the action-oriented combat, which is quite fluid and makes the typical JRPG grind more than just bearable. The story here revolves around a young soldier living in the shadow of his admiral father who, by happenstance, finds himself teleported across the galaxy to a “backwater” planet after discovering a mysterious artifact on an away mission. Trust me when I tell you that this one is without question worth the discounted price of $24.99!

Pick it up here: Save 50% on STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R on Steam

4. Tales of Arise ($9.99)

The Tales series is a pretty long-running JRPG franchise that got its start on the SNES. Over the years, the franchise has had many installments, but nonetheless had started to grow somewhat stale. Enter Tales of Arise. This entry immediately stood out with its incredibly polished, almost painterly graphics, its strong character design, and a tight and compelling opening chapter. The momentum isn’t 100% sustained throughout the entire experience, but the dips in velocity make way for some genuinely great character moments — something which, if you are anything like me, you’ll find yourself looking forward to, because the characters are highly compelling. I especially like the two leads who have a sort of back-and-forth, enemies-to-lovers kind of tale (though it has its own twists and turns unique to this game). Then there is the highly imaginative world-setting, which involves a conflict between two planets and their denizens with lore stretching back hundreds and hundreds of years. The combat is about as fluid as just about any JRPG I have ever played, with great animations and flair. Voice acting is also strong in this game. I could go on and on, but truthfully, I paid full price for this game on launch and had no regrets at all. So, at $9.99, I would place this as one of the best games in the Steam Autumn sale as a whole!

Pick it up here: Save 75% on Tales of Arise on Steam

5. Dragon Quest XI Echoes of an Elusive Age S Definitive Edition ($19.99)

Finally, I decided that this list couldn’t be complete without Dragon Quest XI S. What can I say about this game that hasn’t already been said? Dragon Quest is one of those game series that knows what it is through and through. It hasn’t ever strayed too far, at least in the mainline series, from that hardcore, old-school, ride-or-die, grind-it-out JRPG formula many of us fell in love with decades ago, and which has continued to prove popular year after year. This particular installment may just be the best in the entire franchise, though I know many would argue that point. In any case, it certainly has one of the highest production values, with gorgeous visuals from one of Japan’s greatest game studios. The voice acting may just be the best on this list, and the narrative is a classic heroic tale with subtle twists and sprinklings of humor interspersed throughout its substantial ~60-hour main story. The game doesn’t shy away from its turn-based roots, but it wraps those encounters in a world that is quite large and fun to explore. Oh, and this game also has one of the coolest features I have ever encountered in any JRPG: you can switch between the full 3D version of the game and an SNES-esque 2D top-down version (though there are some caveats about when and how this can be done)! This is a must-have for any JRPG fan at just $19.99!

Pick it up here: Save 50% on DRAGON QUEST® XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age™ - Definitive Edition on Steam