Role-playing games are the premier videogame genre when it comes to giving players the freedom of choice. They let them create their own character, give them room to develop a backstory for them, and devise a motivation going forward. Some RPGs, however, particularly excel when it comes to giving the player the freedom to choose their morality. They can be either good or evil depending on how they wish to play the game.

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The perks of the good playthrough are usually obvious, but some games go the extra mile in making the evil playthrough worth it even on the first attempt. Here's a list of some RPGs that reward an evil playthrough.

5 The Fallout Series

Fallout 3 blowing up megaton

Fallout has always been great when it comes to giving the player ample opportunity to be the bad guy. In the first game, the player can even get an evil ending of sorts if they choose to join the master and become a mutant, resulting in a cutscene that shows vault 13 being overrun by super mutants. Fallout 2 is just as good if not better at letting the player be evil, allowing the player to join the various crime families of New Reno. In both games, however, every NPC is killable, meaning the player could conceivably murder everything in the game and take their stuff if they wanted.

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With Bethesda's acquisition of the franchise and subsequent move to a 3d first-person shooter-style RPG, the series thankfully retained the ability to let the player be evil. For example, Fallout 3 allows the player to sell NPCs into slavery and blow up megaton. Fallout: New Vegas, in particular, is practically limitless when it comes to evil choices, like giving players the option to join Caesars Legion, become a cannibal (also in Fallout 3), and tons more.

4 The Outer Worlds

The Outer Worlds is a lot like a Fallout game (specifically an Obsidian or Black Isle developed title) in that it gives the player plenty of room to stretch their legs and get involved with the various factions of the story. In this case, the player can occupy the role of a company man and pick the side of the corporations, which is the game's equivalent to an evil playthrough.

The corporate factions of The Outer Worlds are often times heartless, corrupt, and even outright murderous at times, which the player can participate in at virtually any point. The Outer Worlds, however, does not necessarily require the player to pick a faction to be evil. In fact, the player can kill practically every character in the game if they want to, which is pretty evil by most people's standards.

3 KOTOR 1 & 2

Star Wars KOTOR 1 + 2

What's more evil than turning to the dark side and becoming a Sith Lord? Both KOTOR games are standout examples of just how fun an evil playthrough can be, if not for the abilities it grants the player, but for the impact it can have on the story. In the first game, the player has the option of falling to the dark side as part of the story. This culminates in the ending in which Revan defeats the Republic and becomes the new lord of the Sith (killing many of their followers and corrupting Bastila Shan in the process).

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In KOTOR 2, playing as a dark side character carries implications beyond even the player. If asked, Darth Traya will look into the future and explain how the player's choices affected those around them, much like the ending slides one would see in a fallout game. This includes party members, planets, and factions; all of which may be affected by a dark side playthrough.

2 TES IV: Skyrim

Skyrim Fan Finds Dragonborn Statue at Local Brewery

Skyrim is all about the player doing whatever they want. Outside the main quest line there is a massive amount of quests to seek out and complete, many of which are driven by player choice. In terms of a hard morality system, Skyrim basically has none to speak of. However, there is a sense of good and evil with regard to the Aedra and Daedra in the lore. The former are essentially the good gods while the latter are mostly evil which becomes apparent upon doing quests for them. Daedric Princes such as Boethia, Hermaeus Mora, or Molag Bal are all malevolent beings that usually task the player with committing terrible acts should they choose to seek them out. Doing so can result in the player obtaining powerful weapons, armor, or magical items associated with each Prince.

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There are also plenty of less than reputable factions that the player can join such as the Dark Brotherhood or Thieves Guild (both of whom actually worship Daedric lords). There are also diseases/conditions like Lycanthropy and Vampirism that give the player special abilities at the cost of being seen as an evil character. This choice is especially important during the Dawnguard DLC.

1 Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines

Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines logo and cover art

Bloodlines has a rather intricate morality system that greatly impacts the player and their game experience. Much of it is based around staving off "the beast," or in other words, a vampire's need to feed. In just the same way that there are Masquerade points, there are also Humanity points, which serves as the game's primary morality mechanic. Lowering the player's humanity level can be accomplished by committing increasingly evil acts such as murder. Humanity can also be lowered as part of a quest if the appropriate choice is made.

The interesting thing about the Humanity system is how lowering it affects gameplay. With a lower level, dialogue options change to reflect the player's diminished control over their urges. At some point, the player may even go into a killing spree referred to as a frenzy if their level is low enough. Indeed, Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines is quite good at letting the player go from a bad vampire to an even worse one if they so choose.

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