Old school RPG for 13 year old?

[Ralph-Wiggum]

My non-CC brother told me today that his daughter is interested in D&D, but too embarrassed to join the club at school. On top of a couple of tabletop suggestions that might fit (Pathfinder, maybe Mice & Mystics), I suggested that maybe she could try out a PC RPG.

She’s especially interested in something where she can create her own character and roll for her stats (!). As far as I know, she hasn’t/doesn’t play video games very often, so it would need to be something that isn’t super dense or with a steep learning curve. She’s an avid reader, so probably something with a good story and not just hack and slash (e.g. Icewind Dale, ToEE). Any suggestions of games that might fit the bill? And it doesn’t necessarily have to be something that has come out recently. Thanks!

[Isgrimnur]

Planescape: Torment?

[NickAragua]

Baldur's Gate 2 comes to mind. #1 has a steeper learning curve and your characters start out about as tough as swamp reeds during dry season, so it might be unnecessarily frustrating.

Knights of the Old Republic 1/2 are also pretty thematically appropriate (although, star wars and not D&D).

There's also Neverwinter Nights 2 and its expansions (skip #1, that's almost entirely hack n slash).

For *really* old school action, go with the Gold Box games. But, those have a pretty steep learning curve, so maybe pass on those for now.

Edit:
I second Planescape Torment, but with the caveat that it's a little bit *eccentric* and you're always a dude.

[Smoove_B]

Uh...

Planescape: Torment?

so it would need to be something that isn’t super dense or with a steep learning curve

It's hard to imagine how a 13 year old would view Baldur's Gate, but in terms of more likely way for her to ease in the D&D experience, it's a classic. As a counterpoint to Nick, starting with the second one might prove too confusing just based on the story and the fact that the character would be leveled.

If your non-CC brother is comfortable with mods, I think the Temple of Elemental Evil game was updated to include more "role playing" content (i.e. stories). However, it is still a D&D combat simulator at its heart and tilts more toward combat than say Baldur's Gate. Same with the Icewind Dale games.

[Isgrimnur]

Hey, she likes to read. And yes, it was kind of a joke.

[NickAragua]

It's hard to imagine how a 13 year old would view Baldur's Gate, but in terms of more likely way for her to ease in the D&D experience, it's a classic. As a counterpoint to Nick, starting with the second one might prove too confusing just based on the story and the fact that the character would be leveled.

If the kid is an "avid reader", she'll have no problem picking up what's going on in BG2. It doesn't directly call back to BG1 that much. I've got nothing against BG1, but, compared to BG2, it's pretty low on meaningful dialogue. Well, the original anyway. I don't know about the "enhanced edition".

Last time I played BG1, I went full Daehawk on it, I think I had like ten or twenty mods on there - banter packs, romance packs, bug fixes, the works. Really made a huge difference and brought it up to par with BG2. I wouldn't expect a thirteen year old to be screwing around with mod install orders and such though, which is why I would put BG2 ahead - it's perfectly fine right out of the box (although, there are a whole bunch of mods that make it just so much better...)

[Ralph-Wiggum]

I was thinking about BG2 but was worried it might be too much for someone who, as far as I know, hasn’t played much more than games on a phone/iPad (they didn’t have a console in the house until a few months ago, and it’s mainly her brother who
uses it). I’m not worried about the story of BG2, just the actual gameplay. I can’t remember: is there a difficulty setting and a tutorial at the beginning?

[Blackhawk]

My non-CC brother told me today that his daughter is interested in D&D, but too embarrassed to join the club at school. On top of a couple of tabletop suggestions that might fit (Pathfinder, maybe Mice & Mystics), I suggested that maybe she could try out a PC RPG.

FWIW, the current edition of D&D is far, far easier to learn than Pathfinder. I

[NickAragua]

I can’t remember: is there a difficulty setting and a tutorial at the beginning?

There is a difficulty setting which makes everybody pushovers, but I don't recall a tutorial.

Neverwinter Nights 2 definitely has a similar caliber story, with the bonus of difficulty slider and tutorial.

[Sepiche]

It's a bit more recent, but I feel like Divinity: Original Sin might be a good fit.

The characters are very customizable, the combat is turn based and well done, the story is interesting, the quests often focus on more than just combat. The combat can be challenging, so maybe go in on a lower difficulty level, but I think it might check a lot of the right boxes.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Pillars of Eternity.

For those unfamiliar with the genre, it provides a great way to acclimate to the style of classic CRPGs. So I'd suggest starting there prior to delving into the Infinity Engine classics.

[TheMix]

My concern with BG2 is Chapter 2. It's easy to stall there. At the beginning there are a zillion people to talk to and quests to pick up. However, you generally are too weak to do most of them. For someone without a lot of experience, I suspect it would be easy to just give up.

NWN 2 is a possibility. But it's been a while since I played.

D:OS had some fun combat and a decent story. Did it have attribute rolling at the beginning? I'm currently playing PoE (having just started). No attribute rolling. Also... she'd need to play on easy. It has not been forgiving so far.

Blackguards are a bit interesting. Though, again, I don't recall whether you buy attributes or roll them.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

Pillars of Eternity would be great and I’ll suggest, but she may have her mind set on rolling for stats (rather that distributing points).

[Blackhawk]

Is fantasy a must? Because Shadowrun Returns/etc might be good, although there is some mature content.

BG2 and Divinity would be excellent choices.

But have you considered Dragon Age? Either Origins or Inquisitions. You don't have stat rolling, but you have a modern take on the mechanics of those old school RPGs that could teach the concepts without a horrible learning curve.


/edit - If top-down isn't a must, consider Legend of Grimrock 1 or 2.

[Archinerd]

A few not yet mentioned;

Card Hunter
Sanctuary RPG: Black Edition
Quest for Glory
Avernum Escape from the Pit