13 Hardest Turn-Based RPGs Ever Made, Ranked (2023)

Turn-based RPGs have an extreme reliance on players using their heads to help a group of characters to survive different situations. Although these are commonly war games, there have been other settings available for players to strategize around.

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However, not all turn-based RPGs are made equal, as some can be incredibly challenging and therefore threaten the lives of the characters the player has to control. These games are well known for their difficulty, making them some of the hardest turn-based RPGs to complete, though it is still possible to make it to the end. Players need to carefully consider their moves to get the best result in these games.

Updated January 25, 2023, by Megan Smith: While players have been challenging themselves on the early access of Baldur's Gate 3. The turn-based RPG by Larion Studios finally announced that it will be fully releasing August 2023 where the game will progress and become harder or even less of a challenge due to updated balancing.

However, this isn't the only RPG that has graced fans of the turn-based genre as early 2023 also saw players finally sinking their hands into the next Fire Emblem title of the franchise, Fire Emblem Engage. With three difficulty settings to choose from as well as the option to making losing units permanent players are able to control how difficult the game is. In between playing this at the start of the year and Baldur's Gate 3 near the end there are older and more challenging titles for players to try that really define a turn-based RPG.

13 Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne Is Deemed The Hardest Turn-Based RPG

Japanese role-playing games are already known for their difficulty especially with many of them using turn-based combat that relies on the player either getting lucky or grinding levels to be more powerful than their opponent. Shin Megami Tensei is a turn-based RPG that takes this even further, and it only got harder the more games that were produced.

Those that are new to the Shin Megami Tensei franchise may wish to skip this title or at least familiarize themselves with the combat. Every fight relies on the player understanding how buffs work to get the upper hand in combat, not understanding how these work will ge the player killed repeatedly.

12 Old Games Don't Hold The Player's Hand Like The 7th Saga

The 7th Saga is another turn-based RPG that is infamously known for being an unforgiving challenge to the players that tried their hands with it on the Super Nintendo. The game itself in Japanese was already a challenge for players however the localized version that others got to try internally actually made the game harder.

While the opponents were able to keep their usual stats, when a player leveled up their characters they received less of an upgrade to their own stats. This meant that going into battles, the player was weakened while the rival remained the same. Therefore, many players would resist grinding levels to avoid overpowered opponents.

11 Formations Are Crucial In The Last Remnant

See Also

The Best RPGs for the PS4 | Digital TrendsThe 10 Best Tactics RPGs - IGNThe 14 best turn-based RPGs

The combat system that was added to The Last Remnant was quite the controversial topic between players of the game. Some found it to be quite repetitive while others really enjoyed this unique new take to combat that had been described as turn-based, command based combat system.

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Compared to other Square Enix titles such as Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest which were both highly successful JRPGs and have been known to define the genre. The Last Remnant takes that format and turns it into a challenge for players as the encounters are not only difficult but experimenting with what units go well together and the formation to use can take some practice.

10 Play Classically In Fire Emblem: Fates – Conquest

This fantasy RPG is well-known for its turn-based combat. Players can make the games more challenging for themselves by selecting classic mode which makes every unit death permanent. There is also a variety of difficulties to pick from on top of that which can cause enemies to hit even harder. However, in regard to Fire Emblem Fates, players can select between three versions to try.

Birthright is arguably the easiest, while Conquest leaves more of a challenge for players. Those that are used to Fire Emblem games are recommended to play Conquest due to the difficulty of many of the missions, which may cause a player to retry a level more than once.

9 Battle Brothers Embarks In Intense Medieval Combat

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Battle Brothers is a medieval-themed strategy game where the player is in control of a mercenary band through a world that can only be described as gritty. Players are free to decide who to hire, what jobs to take, and how to train their units which to a beginner player can become very confusing and jeopardizes the power of their team.

The game is made ten times harder as the difficulty of every encounter is scaled to the player; this, therefore, means that contracts never get easy, especially those that have a three-skull rating, which will need players to prepare to the max if they hope to make it through them with the least amount of men killed.

8 Players Will Need To Stay Confident In Bravely Default

While Bravely Default 2 was made to be more approachable to new players, those that experienced the first game will recall the brutality of many enemies that they had faced. Many mechanics in the game may be unfamiliar to players, and therefore practice is needed before these missions will be mastered.

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Although the game has three difficulty settings, even Normal can be a challenge to those that are experiencing Bravely Default for the first time, and therefore many experts of the game would recommend grinding experience to level up jobs.

The turn-based RPG XCOM is known for its challenging combat that forces players to risk their soldiers against enemies, with the danger of an ambush always being nearby. One of the most difficult games in the series is XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Even if a player completes the game on normal, boosting their next playthrough to classic comes with its own intense learning curve, which can be a struggle to overcome.

One of the most difficult mechanics to manage in the game, no matter the difficulty, is a country's panic level. Deploying satellites can reduce this panic; though, keeping on top of this can become stressful fast if a lot of bad things happen at once. Besides these mechanics trying to keep soldiers alive can come with its own difficulties especially when a player may be forced to take risks.

6 Blindly Stumble In Darkest Dungeon

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Another gritty and grimy game that many players have enjoyed but found challenging is Darkest Dungeon. Players that are looking for a challenge need to look no further than this roguelike turn-based RPG that relies on players to adventure through dungeons with a band of characters searching for treasure and completing quests.

The enemies are not the only challenge, as each character has its own flaws that need to be balanced. There are other mechanics players must pay attention to, such as keeping their torch lit and the panic of the party down.

5 Divinity: Original Sin 2 Requires Careful Planning As Well As Power

Although a critically acclaimed title that many have enjoyed, this doesn't reduce the difficulty many players have had while enjoying Divinity: Original Sin 2. This vast world that is being taken over by the void is free for the player to explore; however, adventuring can see players finding more danger than they bargained for.

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It is important that mechanics, such as how the environment can be affected by spells, is learned, as this can make battles easier. Though, players are always at a risk of being defeated and therefore should have revival scrolls at the ready for any such dangers.

4 Leveling Is Essential To Succeed In Baldur's Gate 3

Made by the creators of Divinity: Original Sin 2, Baldur's Gate 3 also has its own challenging turn-based combat that tests the skills and strategy of a player as they approach groups of enemies or terrifying bosses.

Leveling becomes incredibly essential when avoiding the danger of many foes, though even still, these enemies can be a hazard to face. There are also the risks of traps to avoid, as these can be just as deadly as the enemies faced during the turn-based combat, though certain group synergies can make the game more enjoyable.

3 Nostalgia Pays With EarthBound

Retro titles are known for being imbalanced or incredibly hard, especially when the even older ones couldn't even be saved. EarthBound does allow the player to save as long as they can call their dad on a telephone, but that doesn't stop it from being challenging.

Even the first foe of the legendary RPG, which would most likely be a dog, can down the player, and therefore, EarthBound is another situation where grinding experience can make the adventure a lot easier.

2 There's No Way To Change Difficulty In King's Bounty 2

King's Bounty 2 is another title that relies on players to build their own battalion of units with little to no assistance on how it works. There is a wide range of different soldiers that are all from different factions that may or may not work well together. While the game itself doesn't have any difficulty settings, the class players decide to choose will determine what units are beneficial to their play style and therefore may make certain challenges harder.

Players that are not sure what they are doing may struggle to take on these battles; this may mean players need to experiment with different units to find the right set-up before taking on another difficult battle, though leveling units does become harder the more times a player loses with them.

1 Final Fantasy Tactics Tests A Player's Strategy

A cult classic and the first of the Final Fantasy Tactics franchise, this title turns the well-received and much-loved Final Fantasy franchise into a turn-based strategy RPG. It has some incredibly steep learning curves for new players and the difficulty randomly spikes in places where the player may not yet be prepared.

However, persistence will help those to get through it. A lot of the difficulty issues lie with the failure rate of skills, which may be the difference between life and death, as well as the damage done by enemies, which should be avoided.

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