Role Playing Games Like Skyrim: 14 Picks on Steam

The best role playing games like Skyrim give you the same pull: a big world you can walk into from any direction, a character who becomes whatever you practise, and a quest log that grows faster than you can clear it. Skyrim made it normal to ignore the main story for dozens of hours because a ruin on a hillside looked interesting. The picks below chase that feeling in different ways, from Bethesda’s own worlds to grittier medieval adventures and co-op survival.

What makes Skyrim feel like Skyrim?

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition is Bethesda Game Studios’ single-player fantasy RPG, released on Steam on Oct 27, 2016. The Special Edition bundles the base game with its add-ons, remastered art and effects, and support for Creations, Bethesda’s add-on content that brings new quests, armor, weapons and more.

What keeps people playing for years comes down to a few ingredients:

• Go anywhere from the start. The map is open early, and the most memorable moments come from detours rather than the main quest.
• Become what you do. Skyrim has no fixed class. Your skills improve as you use them, so a character who sneaks a lot becomes a thief without you ever picking “thief” from a menu.
• First-person immersion. You see the world through your character’s eyes, which makes exploring caves and cities feel personal.
• Guilds and side stories. Joining a mages’ college or a thieves’ guild can matter more to your playthrough than saving the world.

No game matches all four perfectly, so the smartest way to pick between role playing games like Skyrim is to decide which ingredient you miss most. The sections below are grouped that way. If you want an even broader spread, our 14 games like Skyrim list covers more angles.

Bethesda role playing games like Skyrim

If what you love is the specific Bethesda formula (wander, loot, join a faction, get distracted), these are the safest bets because they come from the same studio or the same universe.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered

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Why it fits: This is Skyrim’s direct predecessor, rebuilt with new visuals and refined gameplay by Bethesda Game Studios and Virtuos. You explore Cyrodiil, the heart of Tamriel, and fight to stop Daedric forces pouring in from the planes of Oblivion.

What you do: Build any character you like, from noble warrior to assassin or sorcerer, then roam a huge province full of towns, dungeons and Oblivion gates. The Shivering Isles and Knights of the Nine expansions are included.

Who it suits: Anyone who wants more Elder Scrolls right now. Of all the role playing games like Skyrim here, this one needs the least adjustment. Steam lists it as single-player.

Fallout 4

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Why it fits: Swap Nordic ruins for a nuclear wasteland around Boston and you have the same structure: hundreds of locations, factions to join or ignore, and a character built your way through the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system and hundreds of perks.

What you do: As the sole survivor of Vault 111, you scavenge, fight, talk your way through problems and rebuild settlements. A perk is a permanent bonus you choose as you level, so you can become a smooth talker, a stealthy sniper or a walking tank in Power Armor.

Who it suits: Players who loved Skyrim’s freedom but don’t mind guns instead of swords. Single-player, with full controller support.

Starfield

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Why it fits: Bethesda’s first new universe in over 25 years keeps the “make any character, go anywhere” promise and moves it to the year 2330. You join Constellation, a group of explorers hunting rare artifacts across the galaxy.

What you do: Choose a background and traits, then travel between more than 1,000 planets. The appeal is scale and freedom rather than hand-placed dungeons around every corner.

Who it suits: Sci-fi fans who enjoyed Skyrim’s sandbox side. Single-player, with full controller support.

The Elder Scrolls Online

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Why it fits: It is set in Tamriel about 1,000 years before Skyrim, so you can visit Morrowind, fight Daedra in Oblivion and see familiar regions in a different era. The Steam package includes the base game plus Morrowind, Imperial City, Orsinium, Thieves Guild and Dark Brotherhood content.

What you do: Quest solo or with friends in a shared world, take on new seasonal content that arrives every three months, or duel other players. It is an MMO (a massively multiplayer online game), so you will see other players around you.

Who it suits: Skyrim fans who always wished they could bring a friend. Steam lists online co-op, online PvP and in-app purchases.

Fantasy action RPGs with Skyrim’s sense of adventure

These keep the swords, magic and monsters but change the feel of combat. If Skyrim’s fighting was the part you tolerated rather than loved, one of these may click harder.

ELDEN RING

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Why it fits: The Lands Between are a vast open continent where open fields and huge, layered dungeons connect seamlessly. Like Skyrim, the best moments come from spotting something on the horizon and riding toward it.

What you do: Fight tough enemies and bosses with weapons, spells and summons, learning when to attack and when to dodge. You can mix weapons, armor and magic freely to suit how you play.

Who it suits: Players ready for much harder combat. Single-player at heart, with online co-op and PvP listed on Steam. If you like it, our best open world games on Steam guide has more in this vein.

Avowed

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Why it fits: Obsidian Entertainment’s first-person fantasy RPG is one of the newer role playing games like Skyrim, and it shares the first-person view and the mix of steel and magic. It is set in Eora, the world of the Pillars of Eternity games.

What you do: As an envoy of Aedyr, you investigate a strange plague spreading across the Living Lands, an island full of wild magic. Your choices shape the fate of its people and creatures.

Who it suits: Players who want Skyrim’s perspective with sharper writing and more consequential decisions. Single-player, with full controller support.

Dragon’s Dogma 2

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Why it fits: Capcom’s action RPG is built on the idea of choosing your own experience: your Arisen’s look, your vocation (the game’s word for class), your party and how you approach each situation.

What you do: Explore a deep fantasy world with Pawns, otherworldly companions. You customise a main Pawn who always travels with you and can recruit up to two more Pawns created by other players through the network, while the game itself stays single-player.

Who it suits: Anyone who loved Skyrim’s travel and wants more physical, creative combat. Steam recommends a gamepad.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning

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Why it fits: Its design team includes Ken Rolston, lead designer of Oblivion, and you can feel the kinship in its sprawling world and free character building.

What you do: Play the first warrior ever resurrected from death and travel from the city of Rathir to Dalentarth and dark dungeons. The Destiny system lets you keep reshaping your class as your style changes, blending magic and melee into fast combat.

Who it suits: Players who found Skyrim’s fights stiff and want something punchier. Single-player, with full controller support.

Grounded medieval worlds without the magic

Some players loved Skyrim most when it felt like living in a place: chopping wood, riding between villages, getting into trouble with guards. These two lean into that.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II

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Why it fits: It is a story-driven action RPG with a rich open world set in 15th-century Europe, played in first person. Among realistic role playing games like Skyrim, it is the deepest pick on this list.

What you do: Follow young Henry on a long journey through medieval Bohemia, with no dragons or spells. Expect a slower, more demanding feel than Skyrim, where swordplay takes practice.

Who it suits: History fans and players who prefer immersion over power fantasy. Single-player, with full controller support.

Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord

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Why it fits: Bannerlord is a medieval sandbox where no two playthroughs match. You create a character and carve out your own story in Calradia, an empire torn by civil war.

What you do: Trade, craft weapons, recruit companions, engage in politics, manage your fief and lead armies into huge real-time battles that you fight in first or third person.

Who it suits: Players who wanted Skyrim’s civil war to be the whole game. Single-player, with online PvP, Steam Workshop support and a level editor for mods. Our best strategy games on Steam list suits you if the army side hooks you.

Story-heavy party RPGs with big choices

Skyrim gives you freedom; these give you consequences. They are less about wandering alone and more about companions, dialogue and decisions that ripple outward.

Baldur’s Gate 3

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Why it fits: Larian’s party-based Dungeons & Dragons RPG lets you build a character from 12 classes and 11 races, then make choices that genuinely reshape the story. It is a very different camera and pace from Skyrim, but the freedom to solve problems your way is similar.

What you do: With a mind flayer parasite in your brain, you gather a party, explore, loot, fight and romance your way across the Forgotten Realms. Combat is turn-based, meaning you and enemies act in turns rather than in real time.

Who it suits: Players who want role playing games like Skyrim with more meaningful choices. Single-player, online co-op for a party of up to four, LAN co-op, Remote Play Together and cross-platform multiplayer, on Windows and macOS. See our best turn-based RPG games on Steam for more.

Dragon Age Inquisition

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Why it fits: BioWare’s fantasy RPG pairs a large, open world of Thedas with a choice-driven story. You lead a band of champions as the Inquisitor while factions war and a demonic invasion begins.

What you do: Explore wide regions, capture enemy keeps and make decisions that can alter parts of the world itself. The Game of the Year Edition includes Jaws of Hakkon, The Descent and Trespasser.

Who it suits: Players who loved Skyrim’s world but wanted stronger companions. Single-player, with online co-op listed on Steam. Our best story games on Steam list has more narrative picks.

Co-op survival RPGs for playing Skyrim-style with friends

Skyrim never had co-op, which is why so many players hunt for skyrim-like games they can share. These two blend exploration and fighting with crafting and building, and both can be played alone too.

Valheim

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Why it fits: Its Norse-inspired setting will feel familiar to anyone who loved Skyrim’s Nordic look. You explore a procedurally generated world (built by the game’s rules, so each map differs) with distinct biomes, resources and enemies.

What you do: Craft weapons, raise Viking longhouses, sail the seas and defeat regional bosses called the Forsaken to prove yourself to Odin. Progress comes through gear and boss kills rather than a long story.

Who it suits: Groups who want role playing games like Skyrim with base building. Steam lists its release as Sep 9, 2026, with single-player and online co-op for 1 to 10 players on Windows, macOS and Linux. More in our survival games like Valheim list.

Enshrouded

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Why it fits: Enshrouded is a survival action RPG in a handcrafted fantasy kingdom, Embervale, being devoured by a corrupting fog called the Shroud. Its skill tree lets you become an armored fighter, a ranger or a battlemage, or blend them, much like Skyrim’s mix-and-match builds.

What you do: Explore forests, dunes and snowy peaks with a grappling hook and glider, hunt and farm, rescue survivors to grow a settlement, and build anything in a fully terraformable world.

Who it suits: Players who want Skyrim-style exploration with building and friends. Steam lists its release as Oct 15, 2026, with single-player and online co-op. Our best survival games on Steam guide covers the wider genre.

How to choose and the mistakes to avoid

A quick worked example: say you loved Skyrim mostly for sneaking through dungeons as a stealth archer, played solo, and found the late game too easy. Oblivion Remastered gives you more of that same loop. Elden Ring keeps the dungeons but makes them dangerous. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II keeps stealth but makes everything harder and more realistic. Pick based on how much challenge you want, not on which game looks most like Skyrim in screenshots.

Common mistakes when choosing between role playing games like Skyrim:

• Expecting the same combat. Elden Ring and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II are much more demanding. If you just want to relax and explore, start with a Bethesda pick.
• Assuming “RPG” means open world. Baldur’s Gate 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition are about parties and choices more than solo wandering.
• Forgetting player count. Most Skyrim-like games are single-player. If you want friends along, go straight to The Elder Scrolls Online, Elden Ring, Baldur’s Gate 3, Valheim or Enshrouded.
• Skipping the older picks. Fallout 4 and Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning still deliver the open-world loop that many newer releases only imitate.

Watch each game’s trailer above before you commit; how a game moves tells you more than any list. For a second take with different emphasis, try games that are like Skyrim, or browse every games like guide on Gamescape.

Questions and answers

Is Elder Scrolls a role-playing game?

Yes. The Elder Scrolls is a series of open-world role-playing games from Bethesda Game Studios. You create a character, improve skills like swordplay, magic and sneaking, and choose which quests and factions to follow. Skyrim is the fifth main entry. Oblivion, the fourth, now has a remaster on Steam, and The Elder Scrolls Online is an online multiplayer RPG set in the same world, about 1,000 years before Skyrim.

What are some games similar to Skyrim available on Steam?

The closest are The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, Fallout 4 and Starfield, all from Bethesda Game Studios. For fantasy exploration and combat, try Elden Ring, Avowed, Dragon's Dogma 2 and Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II and Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord suit players who want a grounded medieval world, while Valheim and Enshrouded add co-op survival.

Are there any role playing games like Skyrim with co-op?

Skyrim itself is single-player, but several similar RPGs on Steam support co-op. The Elder Scrolls Online lets you explore Tamriel with friends as an online multiplayer game. Elden Ring has online co-op, Baldur's Gate 3 supports a party of up to four online or over LAN, Valheim takes 1 to 10 players, and Enshrouded offers solo or online co-op survival in a fantasy world.

What is the closest game to Skyrim?

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered is the closest match. It comes from the same studio and series, uses the same first-person open-world structure with guilds, dungeons and free character building, and is set in Cyrodiil, another province of Tamriel. Fallout 4 is the next nearest, swapping dragons for a nuclear wasteland while keeping the same freedom to wander, join factions and build your own playstyle.

What is the no. 1 open world game?

There is no single agreed number one, because it depends on what you want from an open world. If you love Skyrim's freedom to wander and build any character, Bethesda's own Oblivion Remastered and Fallout 4 are natural next steps. If you want harder combat and a world packed with secrets, Elden Ring is the usual answer. For a realistic medieval setting, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II fits best.