17 Best Action RPGs of 2023

RPGs have become the lifeblood of the video game industry, and as a result, the world is flooded with them each year. In preparation for what the future is about to bring, we’ve compiled our picks for the best new action RPGs of 2023.

#17 Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising

Platform: PC PS4 PS5
Release Date: December 14, 2023

Steam | PlayStation

If you’ve never partaken in this franchise before, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising might be the game for you to try out to see if you like it! The title is a fighting game with RPG and anime influences, and it has multiple modes to help you get adjusted to all that’s involved in playing it.

For example, there are multiple modes to train you. Or, you can be trained via the action-RPG-style campaign that’ll teach you how to control the characters.

Or if you’re a veteran, you can jump right into the matches and see how you stack up against players from around the world!

#16 RoboCop: Rogue City

Platform: PC PS5 XSX|S
Release Date: November 02, 2023

Steam | PlayStation | Xbox

When you’re a character like Robocop, you’re not thinking about things in terms of an RPG. However, that’s what RoboCop: Rogue City offers you as you play the game. You’ll start out with your trusty Auto-9 assault pistol but slowly grow your arsenal and abilities with each bad guy you vanquish.

The upgrades you get will be up to you to pick. Do you want to maximize your firepower? Do you wish to make Robocop a little more flexible so he can dodge enemy fire? Do you want to improve other skills to make you a more well-rounded crime fighter? A deep skill tree will let you choose your path, so make Robocop the best he can be!

#15 Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

Platform: PC November 08, 2023
Release Date: PS4 PS5 Xbox One XSX|S – November 09, 2023

Steam | PlayStation | Xbox

If you think the title Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is over the top, wait until you play the title yourself! The action-packed game features Kazuma Kiryu trying to figure out who is trying to bring him “back to life.” To do so, he’ll have to fight through swarms of big and small enemies to survive.

But he won’t just be relying on one thing to get him through. Kiryu can adapt to different fighting styles, each with special abilities and skills, to unleash havoc on his enemies. But will it be enough? Or will he fall to this mysterious plot?

#14 Remnant 2

Platform: PC PS5 XSX|S
Release Date: July 25, 2023

Steam | Playstation | Xbox

When it comes to action RPGs, nothing is better than putting your character build up against vast hordes of enemies and seeing if you did enough to take them down with minimal effort. If you’re up for that kind of gameplay, Remnant II is a title you’ll want to check out.

In the game, you’ll pick your character and decide what kind of fighter they will be. Will they be brutes that beat enemies up close? Or will you give them a hard dose of reality from afar? The choice is yours, and with the new systems put into the sequel, you’ll have more ways to improve them and make them deadlier in battle.

#13 Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty

Platform: PC PS5 XSX|S
Release Date: September 26, 2023

Cyberpunk 2077 fans can finally get into the Phantom Liberty expansion. While the initial launch for Cyberpunk 2077 was rough, the development team over at CD Projekt Red had been working hard to bring this game up to their expectations. Fortunately, they have turned the game around, and we’re gearing up for an expansion release.

With Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, we’re getting a new storyline featuring V. This story will add a new area to the game and a slew of characters along with items. Likewise, it’s worth noting that the storyline will be set within the main campaign, which ultimately means there’s potential to add another base game ending.

If you’re a fan of the action RPG single-player experience from the base campaign, then this is an expansion you won’t miss out on. Get ready to jump right back into the dark, gritty underworld of Night City.

#12 Street Fighter 6

Platform: PC PS4 PS5 XSX|S
Release Date: June 02, 2023

Steam | PlayStation | Xbox

When Street Fighter 6 was announced, there were many expectations and hopes among the fanbase. But one thing that no one would have guessed was that the title would be getting a character creation mode that would act like an RPG just as much as a fighting game.

In the story mode, you’ll make your own “World Warrior” from top to bottom. Make them look like you, or make them look however you want! Then, you’ll travel the world, meet up with the various Street Fighters to learn their moves, and create a special moveset all your own!

How will you build your fighter? It’s a new twist to the game giving you a bit more of an action RPG experience.

#11 Dead Island 2

Platform: PC PS4 Xbox One PS5 XSX|S
Release Date: April 21, 2023

Epicgames | Playstation | Xbox

Are you ready to face the dead once again? In Dead Island 2, you’ll be put in Los Angeles after a zombie outbreak gone wrong, and it’s up to you to survive. Survive Los Angeles-style that is! You’ll have the option to go to numerous parts of LA and see how bad each section is. Then, when you find the zombies, you can beat them up in numerous ways, including using the environment to your advantage to wipe them out! Fortunately, after years of uncertainty on whether this game would release, you can jump into a zombie-filled LA today.

#10 The Lords of the Fallen

Platform: PC PS5 XSX|S
Release Date: 2023

If you enjoyed The Lords of the Fallen, prepare for another helping. A reboot of sorts is here, which is also called The Lords of the Fallen. Taking place ages after the first game, the demonic lord has risen and will once again unleash his tyranny against the world. Players will get another action RPG experience where you’ll go through the realms of both the living and the dead to stop this new evil threat. Fortunately, you don’t have to go through this title experience alone. This game will also include cooperative multiplayer support, with players being able to join in and go through the campaign together. 

#9 Like a Dragon Ishin

• Developer: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio
• Publisher: Sega
• Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
• Release date: February 21, 2023

The Yazuka franchise has shown many different gameplay styles that gamers can have fun with. But with the upcoming Like a Dragon Ishin, you’ll be able to take that on in a new way once again.

Set in the 1860s, you’ll have four different hack-n-slash styles to choose from. You can be a pure swordsman and use a special blade to literally slice up the competition. Or, you can be a modern fighter and use a gun in order to blast enemies away.

If you’re thinking of a hybrid style, you can use both at once, or if all else fails, sick a tiger on them! Whatever it takes for you to come out on top.

#8 Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

• Developer: Team Ninja
• Publisher: Koei Tecmo
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
• Release: Early 2023

In an alternate history of the Three Kingdoms period of China where the Later Han Dynasty is crawling with demons, one militia soldier must fight his way through. While soldiers and boss level demons alike try to take you down, you have to utilize your sword fighting abilities to survive. The sword techniques are based on Chinese martial arts, and with each enemy you defeat, you add to your inner power. This action RPG allows you to grow from an unknown warrior into a hero, while taking on some spectacularly creepy demons.

#7 Atomic Heart

• Developer: Mundfish
• Publisher: Mundfish
• Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, XBO, X/S
• Release: 2023

Atomic Heart is an action RPG that puts players into an alternative timeline in 1955. Technology advancements with the Soviet Union has thrived. Players are stepping into the role of a mentally-unstable KGB agent named P-3 who is sent out to investigate a facility that has gone silent. Now, players will venture into the remote area and search for clues. You’ll find that the area is filled with hostile robots and other enemies, leaving it a battle to get the area under control. You’ll need to craft up some weapons, make modifications, and fight your way through tons of soon to be metal scrap to figure out what has turned the robots against humanity.

#6 Lies of P

Platform: PC September 18, 2023
Release Date: PS4 PS5 Xbox One XSX|S September 19, 2023

Steam | PlayStation | Xbox

When a brutal and monster-filled city awaits you, you must do what you can to survive and not let monsters take your life. But it’s you who will determine what happens to your soul.

In Lies of P, you’ll play a very grim version of Pinocchio, who is woken up in a dark city with the desire to find Geppetto. But to reach them, you must weave your way through a dangerous place, which means fighting off those who stand in your way!

Your decisions can shape how Pinocchio fights and the weapons that he uses. Create the fighter you want him to be, and then see just how far you can push this puppet’s ability.

#5 Hogwarts Legacy

• Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
• Developer: Avalanche Software
• Platform: PC, NS, PS4, PS5, XBO, X/S
• Release date: February 10, 2023

Harry Potter fans are getting a new video game title to enjoy. Hogwarts Legacy is actually taking place well before the events of the popular novels and movies. Instead, we’re tossed into a role of a newly accepted student to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You’ll learn spells, tame mythical beasts while also getting the ability to explore the school and nearby grounds.

Meanwhile, there will be plenty of antagonists to fight off along your journey. Included is Ranrok, the leader of the Goblin Rebellion alongside Victor Rookwood, the leader of a Dark Wizard group. Uncover the secrets of ancient magic and fight to keep Hogwarts safe from a looming threat.

#4 Diablo IV

• Developer: Blizzard Entertainment, Vicarious Visions
• Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment
• Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
• Release date: June 6, 2023

It’s been many years since fans of Blizzard’s beloved hack-n-slash franchise had the chance to dive into the struggle between heaven and the underworld.

Plus, the last game in the franchise, the console/PC title, not the mobile knockoff, wasn’t as enjoyed as the publisher likely hoped.

But with Diablo IV, things have changed for the better. The gothic feel is back, and every action you take will be crucial as you attempt to stop Lilith from taking control of the underworld.

Whether you play alone or with a friend, you’ll venture deep into enemy territory and participate in a struggle for life itself!

#3 Final Fantasy XVI

• Developer: Square Enix
• Publisher: Square Enix
• Platforms: PlayStation 5
• Release date: Summer 2023

Typically, if we mention Square Enix and note they’ve made another RPG, you’ll know what to expect. It’ll be a kind of turn-based affair or one that has similar RPG elements that you can easily fall into.

But with Final Fantasy XVI, the game has literally been changed. Instead of those familiar mechanics, the game’s team wanted to give a more intense action-packed feel and turned it more into an action RPG. You’ll wail on your opponents until they fall or turn into a beast known as an Eikon and unleash monstrous fury on your enemies!

Adding that to a deep story with great characters gives you a title you won’t want to miss out on.

#2 Starfield

• Developer: Bethesda Game Studios
• Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
• Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/S
• Release date: September 6, 2023

When it comes to Bethesda, they know how to make titles that will engage your desire for action while also ensuring that you have to think strategically as you go forth. In Starfield, the action will take you to the stars above and to numerous planets.

Whether you’re on a mission to get something done or fighting off pirates in deep space, the action can come in from all sides and at any moment. So you’ll want to build your character and ship to be everything you need to be to survive.

Or, you can simply ignore the action and focus on other things. The game gives you the option to do that.

#1 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

• Developer: Nintendo
• Publisher: Nintendo
• Platforms: Nintendo Switch
• Release date: May 12, 2023

It’s been a long time coming, but The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom has come. The game takes place not long after the fall of Calamity Ganon. Link and Zelda unleash the power of Ganondorf, and Hyrule is ripped apart as a result.

Separated from one another, Link must use new powers to travel across this new version of Hyrule and save the day!

The game will have many new gameplay elements to try and whole new layers to explore in Hyrule. What secrets are hidden in the Sky Islands? What awaits in the underground sections of the realm?

What is Ganondorf’s true plan? Play the game and find out!

Disclaimer: This article was updated on 10/18/23 as we continue to adjust this list with new entries or remove games due to delays or failure to captivate audiences.