Best fantasy games

Recommendations by MathBrush

These are my favorite games that include some sort of magical or fantastical element. Games with mostly horror or sci-fi elements are on other lists, as are surreal games, fairy tale/nursery games, and religious/mythological games. I've included my three favorite "High fantasy" games highest on the list (dragons, wizards, etc.), while the rest of the list is mostly random.

Because so many fantasy games are based off of Zork, they are on their own list.

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1. Heroes, by Sean Barrett (2001)
Average member rating: (24 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Play through the same scenario as a thief, royal, adventurer, wizard, or dragon. One of the first games I played, and one of my favorites. The adventurer character is modeled on Zork type games, while the wizard is modeled on the Enchanter series.

2. Sorcery!
by Steve Jackson and inkle
(2013)
Average member rating: (37 ratings)

MathBrush says:

You wouldn't expect a text game to have gorgeous 3d graphics, but this very popular CYOA game based on a gamebook series has an incredibly rich interface.

3. Choice of the Dragon
by Dan Fabulich and Adam Strong-Morse
(2010)
Average member rating: (36 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A strong choicescript game about being a dragon. Wizards, goblins, sorcery, gold, bloodlust or affection, it's a great game and a successful non-ironic look at fantasy.

4. Praser 5, by Andrew Plotkin (1989)
Average member rating: (8 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A fantasy puzzle-heavy game, and the first of an Andrew Plotkin section in this list. In my opinion, this is the most difficult Interactive Fiction game of all time. Nothing but mythological creatures spouting riddles. Very fun.

5. Dual Transform
by Andrew Plotkin
(2010)
Average member rating: (108 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Although there is some science in this game, it has a very fantasy-like feel, with locations in chapels, caves, and rings of standing stones. Probably the easiest Plotkin game I have played.

6. Hunter, in Darkness, by Andrew Plotkin (1999)
Average member rating: (120 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Hunt the wumpus through a dark cave. A claustrophobic thriller game, and yet another Plotkin game.

7. The Dreamhold
by Andrew Plotkin
(2004)
Average member rating: (174 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Another Plotkin game. An amnesiac sorceror patches his identity back together as he explores a mind-tower.

8. The Moonlit Tower, by Yoon Ha Lee (2002)
Average member rating: (59 ratings)
MathBrush says:

I haven't played this one in a while, but I recall it as a fantasy game with an Asian influence. Very dreamlike.

9. To Spring Open, by Peter Berman and Yoon Ha Lee (as Two-Bit Chip) (2015)
Average member rating: (18 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Short twine game in a Miyazaki-like world. Masks and subways.

10. Kerkerkruip
by Victor Gijsbers
(2011)
Average member rating: (68 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An actual RPG, and an incredible one at that. Stop a wizard and his horde of henchmen by absorbing their powers.

11. Suveh Nux
by David Fisher
(2007)
Average member rating: (225 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Try to decipher the vocabulary and grammar of a magical language to escape a room.

12. Metamorphoses
by Emily Short
(2000)
Average member rating: (127 ratings)

MathBrush says:

The first game in the Emily Short section (there are many more games in my fairytale list). One of the best game mechanics of all time, a machine that changes the elements of anything you put in it and a shrinking/growing machine.

13. Savoir-Faire
by Emily Short
(2002)
Average member rating: (128 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Set in an alternate France with extraordinarily well-developed magic system.

14. City of Secrets
by Emily Short
(2003)
Average member rating: (102 ratings)

MathBrush says:

My new favorite Emily Short game. A large world in a city of magic where two sides try to play you off each other.

15. For a Change
by Dan Schmidt
(1999)
Average member rating: (113 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An experiment in using real words with bizarre meanings. Destroy an enormous wall blocking out the sun. You have a stone.

16. All Roads
by Jon Ingold
(2001)
Average member rating: (152 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A great game with only one real puzzle at the beginning. Travel through time/people/versions of yourself (I'm not sure which) to escape your own execution.

17. Christminster, by Gareth Rees (1995)
Average member rating: (82 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Not my favorite game, but many love it. Explore a British university to find your brother who has been researching alchemy.

18. Dead Like Ants
by C.E.J. Pacian
(2009)
Average member rating: (57 ratings)

MathBrush says:

As an ant wearing red overalls, placate 5 evil creatures, such as an artist ladybug, who threaten your nest.

19. The Mulldoon Legacy, by Jon Ingold (1999)
Average member rating: (42 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Find your grandfather in a museum. A huge game, with elements from almost all genres.

20. Not Just an Ordinary Ballerina
by Jim Aikin
(1999)
Average member rating: (27 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A Christmas themed game (much more fun than it sounds!) Famous for its many hard puzzles.

21. Starry Seeksorrow
by Caleb Wilson (as Ayla Rose)
(2015)
Average member rating: (18 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Magic paper dolls and an enchanted garden.

22. Blighted Isle
by Eric Eve
(2007)
Average member rating: (42 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An Eric Eve game, featuring many optional areas, a mini dating simulation of sorts, and an Arthurian feel. Epic.

23. Oppositely Opal
by Buster Hudson
(2015)
Average member rating: (63 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A game about a witch who uses valley-girl language. I thought it was a lightweight at first, but the puzzles get better and better. A one room game involving opposites.

24. Once and Future
by G. Kevin Wilson
(1998)
Average member rating: (10 ratings)

MathBrush says:

One of the few commercial games of the 90's. Five years in the making, this Arthurian game was huge news in the IF community at the time, but is now largely forgotten. It is free now, and big (I took 1338 turns with the walkthrough).

25. Pytho's Mask
by Emily Short
(2001)
Average member rating: (66 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Yet another great Short game. A heavily conversation-based game in a world with rich magical laws. Infiltrate a party to defend the king.

26. Tales of the Traveling Swordsman
by Mike Snyder
(2006)
Average member rating: (46 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A beautiful fantasy game with unusual fantasy elements. Linear, short, relatively easy, with a fantastic ending.

27. A New Life, by A O Muniz (2005)
Average member rating: (5 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Bizarre fantasy world. This parser game has many branches, and is set in a world where everyone can change their gender over time.

28. Scarlet Sails
by Felicity Banks
(2015)
Average member rating: (21 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Well-paced magic pirate game written with choicescript.

29. Sub Rosa
by Joey Jones, Melvin Rangasamy
(2015)
Average member rating: (40 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Great mid-length puzzle game in a Planescape type setting. Use magic in the Age of Lead to discover the Confessor's Seven Secrets.

30. Arcane Intern (Unpaid)
by Astrid Dalmady
(2015)
Average member rating: (43 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Get a job at a magical publishing company! As an intern. Fetching coffee.

31. Summit
by Phantom Williams
(2015)
Average member rating: (30 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Journey in a strange world where humans have a symbiosis with fish and a strange summit lies over all.

32. TOMBs of Reschette
by Richard Goodness
(2015)
Average member rating: (12 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Deeper than it seems. Explore a dungeon, gain xp, kill the monster... or not. Maybe poke around first.

33. Captain Verdeterre's Plunder
by Ryan Veeder
(2013)
Average member rating: (50 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A fun optimization game. As a pirate, run out of a sinking ship with your rat captain, grabbing what you can, trying to optimize your profit.

34. First Draft of the Revolution
by Emily Short, Liza Daly and inkle
(2012)
Average member rating: (55 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A Web game based on rewriting letters by clicking on troublesome portions. Based on a magical version of the French Revolution.

35. Aayela, by Magnus Olsson (1996)
Average member rating: (24 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A short game about searching for a magical crystal in the darkness, for the queen.

36. Small World, by Andrew D. Pontious (1996)
Average member rating: (12 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Walk around on a literal small world, with your feet on the planet and your head in space. 10 different areas, including a permanent midnight, noon, etc. Average puzzles, innovative setting.

37. Witch's Girl
by Geoff Moore
(2013)
Average member rating: (17 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A cute and silly page-by-page CYOA html game about two young girls in a magical world who try to keep it from ending.

38. Deathless: The City's Thirst
by Max Gladstone
(2015)
Average member rating: (7 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A choice script commercial game with an awesome world where humanity have killed gods and absorbed their powers, and must deal with drought and Scorpionkind. You are an agent of your city government negotiating water rights and blasting stuff to smithereens.

39. Weird City Interloper
by C.E.J. Pacian
(2014)
Average member rating: (53 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An excellent conversation-only game where you try to save a city from a new god and its priest.

40. August, by Matt Fendahleen (2001)
Average member rating: (23 ratings)
MathBrush says:

An intense love story with deep history in a short game. Play the slayer of an evil woman, waiting for your love at an insipid party.

41. Fort Aegea, by Francesco Bova (2002)
Average member rating: (6 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Great D&Dish type adventure. Evade a green dragon in 4 subareas. Has unusual violence.

42. HUNTING UNICORN
by Chandler Groover
(2014)
Average member rating: (28 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A mid-length Twine game about an ugly girl coerced into hunting unicorns.

43. Swan Hill, by Laura Michet (2013)
Average member rating: (19 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A longish Twine game about two brothers in a world with powerful but dangerous magic.

44. The Land Beyond the Picket Fence, by Martin Oehm (1996)
Average member rating: (2 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A short homebrew parser game with good command recognition, ability to experiment, and good cluing. Toadstools, gnome, mad scientist.

45. The Wizard Sniffer
by Buster Hudson
(2017)
Average member rating: (126 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A hilarious castle romp with a simplified command set.

46. The Wand
by Arthur DiBianca
(2017)
Average member rating: (55 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A constrained parser game with a combination-setting wand. Has really deep gameplay.

47. Harbinger
by Kenna
(2017)
Average member rating: (7 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An excellent, mid-length story about a crow fleeing a burning wave of fire.

48. Domestic Elementalism
by fireisnormal
(2017)
Average member rating: (22 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A fun hybrid parser game that has you as a witch with the power to transform the elements of objects.

49. Dungeon Detective
by Wonaglot, Caitlin Mulvihill
(2018)
Average member rating: (16 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A fun mystery game where you play a gnoll detective.

50. Charming
by Kaylah Facey
(2018)
Average member rating: (16 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A wizard's apprentice mostly one-room game where you research and cast spells.

51. The Master of the Land
by Pseudavid
(2018)
Average member rating: (22 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An alternate-history political intrigue game with multiple simultaneous story threads.

52. Into the Lair
by Kenna
(2018)
Average member rating: (7 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A DnD module-type game. Perfect for fans of that genre.

53. Within a circle of water and sand
by Romain
(2018)
Average member rating: (7 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A fighting fantasy-type game about a quest in Polynesia.

54. Heretic's Hope
by G. C. Baccaris
(2019)
Average member rating: (19 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A visually rich Twine game about being isolated on an island of enormous insects.

55. Dungeon Detective 2: Devils and Details
by Wonaglot
(2019)
Average member rating: (9 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An epic DnD-style storyline where you, a gnoll detective, have to solve a mystery involving devils and a deep sewer under town.

56. Skies Above
by Arthur DiBianca
(2019)
Average member rating: (17 ratings)

MathBrush says:

The IF equivalent of a clicker game, you have to grind your way up through several floating islands.

57. Choice of Kung Fu
by Alana Joli Abbott
(2012)
Average member rating: (2 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A great Choicescript game about being a powerful Kung Fu master

58. Blood Money
by Hannah Powell-Smith
(2018)
Average member rating: (6 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Dark fantasy game in an alternate Venice. You are the leader of a Borgia-like family, kind of; you have to compete with or help your two sisters.

59. Tavern Crawler
by Josh Labelle
(2020)
Average member rating: (36 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A great DnD-inspired game with a party of three. Get a reward after 'defeating' a dragon.

60. Heretic's Hope
by G. C. Baccaris
(2019)
Average member rating: (19 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A gothic twine fantasy about an island of large, sentient insects and their dark religions.

61. 4x4 Archipelago
by Agnieszka Trzaska
(2021)
Average member rating: (21 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Sprawling, immensely enjoyable fantasy Twine RPG.

62. One King to Loot them All
by Onno Brouwer
(2023)
Average member rating: (11 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Conan the Barbarian-style game with a single path forward...until a twist.

63. Stay?
by E. Jade Lomax
(2020)
Average member rating: (22 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Excellent time travel fantasy game with a loop that only deepens over time.

64. The Little Match Girl 4: Crown of Pearls
by Ryan Veeder
(2023)
Average member rating: (21 ratings)

MathBrush says:

This game represents several little match girl games, most of which have elements of fantasy, with some science fiction mixed in. These games involve teleporting between worlds using flames.

65. The Cursèd Pickle of Shireton
by Hanon Ondricek
(2020)
Average member rating: (9 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A complex game using a mix of platforms. Humorous but with depth!

66. How Prince Quisborne the Feckless Shook His Title
by John Ziegler
(2023)
Average member rating: (13 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A quintessential fantasy tale, with haunted castles, sprawling landscapes dotted with villages, a young man's personal journey, and a lot of jokes.

67. The Princess of Vestria
by K Paulo
(2022)
Average member rating: (16 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A young woman dreams about a quest to save her poisoned sibling. High Fantasy.

68. The Vambrace of Destiny
by Arthur DiBianca
(2023)
Average member rating: (19 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Fun little limited parser game where you gather powers in a magical artifact.


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