The best linear RPG that do not have open worlds

RPGs are about providing the player's capabilities as they get closer to the game, whether it be through dialogue or character building. While the Western market has moved these concepts to a more open world design, as seen in games like Skyrim or The Witcher 3, there are still many linear RPGs.

Both types of games have their merits, but you can prefer linear games for their greater sense of progress, more cohesive narration or any number of other reasons. Below we look at some linear games that could be better than some of the best games in the open world.

10

Persona 5 Royal

Indeed, any game Persona (and metaphor) is useful here because they are all extremely linear due to their calendar system. Games are structured over time, and every day they represent a number of activities that you can participate, such as working in your part -time work, hanging with friends, studying or exploring dungeons.

Because you can't go back in time, games are very linear, because you always proceed until the end, no matter what you do. Persona 5 Royal is considered the best, but all Persona games (again and metaphor) are a great time, and everyone is watching the same linear approach.

9

Fire Enklem: Three Houses

Fire EMBLEM: Three houses are a tactical RPG, where you become a professor of one of the three houses at the Military Academy. Like the Persona series, three houses follow the calendar system, each main chapter of the game takes place in a month in the game. During your day off you can explore the academy, teach your students or take optional battles.

While the structure of the story is very linear, there are actually three or four main story routes in the game, depending on which house you decide to learn, so there are a lot of repeatability when we see other stories.

8

Dark Souls 3

Before the massive open world of Elden Ring, the Dark Souls series benefited from linear adventures. These dark fantasy RPGs are announced as some of the most difficult games outside, but that's exactly what makes them so pleasant. Finally, the beating of the boss you have been on for age is one of the most satisfying feelings you can find in RPG, and Dark Souls 3 brings it again and again.

Even if you can retreat and explore the optional areas, Dark Souls 3 is mostly a linear experience, with going from point A to point B and fighting and dying on the enemies between them. This means that there is quite a lot with which you can experiment with your character and assembly, so it is always worth examining each new area with which you encounter.

7

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is a narrative RPG action -based galaxy. As a star Lord and his ragtag crew of the intergalactic misfits you will start a new adventure through the galaxy.

This game absolutely nailed the vibration of the Guardians of Galaxy films, while remaining faithful to its comic roots. The fight is quite simple, but the story and characters are excellent and definitely worth playing just as everything drops.

6

Final Fantasy 10

Final Fantasy 10 is often considered one of the best in the series and a good reason. You play as Tidus, a famous blitzball player who was transported to another world. There, the Guardian cloak occupies Yuna, a young woman who keeps the key to saving the world.

The first three quarters of the game are extremely linear and move from place to place without the possibility to retreat. But as soon as you unlock the airship, things open a little more, but still not to the degree of traditional games in the open world.

5

Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Redacked

Devil Survivor is a spin-off series Shin Megami Tensei, which monitors a similar structure based on time as Persona Games. Stripped in a blockade in Tokyo, you will have to fight to survive every day against the power of invasive demons.

The game takes place for the week, and you take each event, such as an interview with NPC or participate in great battle and progress time forward by 30 minutes. The game has a deep battle system that the series is known, but with a tactical company.

4

Live

Live and Live is a collection of seven different stories set at different time periods, such as prehistoric age or future, with two unlockable scenarios that connect them all together. Each story offers a different genre and mechanics, but all are quite linear. Some have a little more survey than others, but mostly you go from the lens to the goal.

Every story in live and live is its own independent experience, so they feel more like playing RPG size bites than one big. However, each story is trying to combine all characters into one cohesive experience with different and unique things and unlocked final scenarios.

3

UndERTALE

Undertale is RPG where you don't have to kill anyone. In every combat meeting you can choose to either solve things peacefully or kill without mercy, and your actions will change how the story takes place with three different ends.

Despite various endings, the real structure of Undertale is as linear as they come, without a great survey, and certainly no open world full of nonsensical control lists. If you want to play a very well written linear RPG where you can play as a pacifist, is an undERTALE game for you.

2

The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky

The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky is the first chapter in the series Massive Trails, which are all quite linear experiences. The trails in the sky are divided into different chapters, each of which appears different areas and side tasks. Outside these side tasks, there is only the main story.

However, the NPC dialog is a big part of the TRAILS series. After almost every main moment, they will have the NPC you will encounter, updated dialogue, so you can spend a lot of time speaking with everyone to get more Lore TidBits or the taste of text.

1

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is compared with Final Fantasy 10 quite a lot and his story is structured in a very similar way. Most of the game is divided into linear dungeons with small pieces of hidden prey to be found in them. Then the last third of the game opens and you can explore the whole world.

However, if you would rather focus on the main story, you can do it just and you will not be punished by not engaging with optional content like you have ever been in FF10. The story of Clair Obscur is also excellent and its struggle based on skills is the breath of fresh air in the RPG tensile genre.