Between shadowy corridors and cosmic taverns, 2022 gave us tabletop RPGs that twisted expectations, sharpened friendships, and turned dice rolls into storytelling magic. Here are the games that ruled our tables and kept us playing long after the snacks ran out.
We asked a dozen writers, designers, presenters, actors, and personalities from around the world of tabletop gaming to tell us which games connected with them and their players this year. These are the best tabletop RPGs we played in 2022.
Fiasco
Fiasco delivered chaos and hilarity during our 2022 sessions, with players crafting disastrous tales from quirky prompts like botched bank heists or cursed family reunions. One table spun a story of rival ice cream vendors sparking a turf war that escalated into apocalyptic mayhem, complete with exploding trucks and mutant flavors. The dice-driven twists kept everyone laughing through the wreckage, turning simple setups into unforgettable trainwrecks.
Mats Andersson, lead combat designer at Fatshark (Warhammer 40,000: Darktide)
I don’t get to play as much as I’d like between adulting and work, so the choices usually fall on faster, more lightweight sessions. Fiasco, as a tabletop single-session RPG, is great as a more casual story generator that always derails and takes the players into fascinatingly weird places.
Fiasco
$30 $30 $30 at Bully Pulpit$30 at Amazon
Dungeons & Drawings
A playful mix of art and adventure, Dungeons & Drawings brought storytelling to life through sketchbooks and character sheets. Each session blended spontaneous creativity with tabletop strategy, as players illustrated their heroes, battles, and discoveries while rolling dice for fate. The game encouraged imagination on both sides of the table, turning role-playing into a shared gallery of ideas and laughter.
Twitter, author and game designer; Diana Jones Emerging Designer for 2022
I love system-agnostic resources that inspire me to bring new ideas to the table. So when I visited Gen Con this year, I had to snap up the unbounded delight that is Dungeons & Drawings: An Illustrated Compendium of Creatures by Blanca Martínez and Joe Sparrow. This book is a lush, hardbound book bursting with fantasy creatures and critters. Instead of complex statblocks, each creature is rated according to Combat, Magic, Smarts, Loot, and Danger. They would also be accompanied by lore description, which ran the gamut from amusing to imposing, an “adventurer’s tip” that gave advice on how to deal with the creature, and the centerpiece of each spread: a beautiful full-color illustration that gave life to imagination.
From centaurs to dragons, eldritch horrors and psychopomps, this book was such a treasure that sparked many fun games. Dungeons & Drawings is published by Andrews McMeel and is available on Amazon in both Kindle and hardcover format.
Dungeons & Drawings
$14 $14 $14 at Amazon
Thousand Empty Light
Thousand Empty Light feels like a fever dream of cosmic tragedy, mixing quiet introspection with surreal horror. Players drift across a dying galaxy, guiding broken souls through collapsing stars and forgotten temples. Its minimalist rules push storytelling to the forefront, where every silence and flicker of light carries emotional weight. The game rewards vulnerability and imagination, creating sessions that linger long after the dice stop rolling.
Twitter, freelance writer, news writer at Dicebreaker, and AELGAMES contributor
Choosing an adventure might feel a bit like cheating, but Alfred Valley’s Thousand Empty Light is so much more than a solo jaunt for the Mothership RPG. Launched as part of this year’s independent Zinemonth initiative, the 36-page zine grabs Mothership‘s Alien-esque themes of corporate hellscape in space and plunges instead to the inky nadir of an alien ocean where the player’s prime directive isn’t survival but maintaining the light.
Instructions are presented in the style of a technical manual and employee induction booklet that looks like the product of an ancient dot-matrix printer. Scribbles in the margins and notecards photocopied on top of training documents hint at secrets uncovered by the extra-authorial curiosity of your predecessors. How they died is classified Hazmos information, but it was either faulty tech, the local fauna, or the crushing weight of being so damn alone down there in the dark.
Thousand Empty Light is an exercise in using atmosphere, mechanics, and that pre-sapient instinctual holdover that, when alone, transforms every sound and shadow into a threat in order to tell a story about something worse than corporate malevolence: apathy.
Thousand Empty Light
$7 $7 $7 at itch.io$7 at DriveThruRPG
The Quiet Year by Avery Alder
Drawn on a map taking shape over a single quiet year, this storytelling game turns community rebuilding into collective art. Players mark the shifting fortunes of a village after disaster-balancing scarcity, hope, and disagreement-until the arrival of an unseen winter. The simplicity of its turn structure hides deep emotional tension, making every sketch, resource decision, and silence around the table feel unusually meaningful.
Jay Dragon and Grub, Possum Creek Games
The Quiet Year is a constant on lists like these, a classic popular with everyone from community organizers to podcast fans and everyone in between. Wherever we go, from the mountains of Colombia to the hotel lobby of Indianapolis, it’s easy to introduce people and invite them into the creation of their own beautiful village. But it’s easy to miss the village for the trees – The Quiet Year is a game about leftist organizing, community discontent, and the challenges of caring for each other when sometimes your needs just don’t line up. There’s no game like it, in its elegance and effectiveness both as a delightful game and as a tool to understand each other.
The Quiet Year
$7 $7 $7 at Buried Without Ceremony (PDF)$48 at Buried Without Ceremony (physical)$8 at DriveThruRPG (PDF)
Kids on Brooms
A magical twist on the popular “Kids on Bikes” system, Kids on Brooms lets players create their own wizarding school adventures filled with charm, awkward friendships, and chaotic spells gone wrong. The rules encourage collaboration and creativity, with character bonds shaping much of the story’s drama and humor. It’s perfect for groups who want lighthearted play mixed with heartfelt storytelling and a touch of magical mischief.
Twitter, senior staff writer at Reviewed/USA Today and AELGAMES contributor
This year, Dimension 20’s Misfits and Magic led me to Kids on Brooms, which has one of the best character creation systems I’ve played. It’s simple and delightfully collaborative, with an immediate emphasis on developing a space where players and game master will all get the most from the experience. If you opt for the “Complete Questions” character creation route, you’ll embark on an exploration of your character’s relationship with their peers, from the rumors others have heard about them to the times that your fellow players’ characters have stood up for your character. The game’s notes on inclusivity, player safety tools, and general sense of purpose make for nostalgic, whimsical gameplay that allows the player to experience a magical world on their own terms. The mechanics make it highly customizable, too – magic is magic is magic, after all.
Kids on Brooms
$9$1331% off $9 $9 at DriveThruRPG (PDF)
Brindlewood Bay
Brindlewood Bay turns cozy crime fiction into a clever mystery game where players become elderly sleuths solving murders in a seaside town. Blending investigative mechanics with collaborative storytelling, it encourages creative theories and surprising plot twists. Its mix of gentle humor and creeping supernatural tension makes every session feel like a charming yet suspenseful episode of a quirky TV mystery.
Twitter, associate professor of English at Auburn University and AELGAMES contributor
Twitter, associate professor of English at Auburn University and AELGAMES contributor, focused on how storytelling systems shape the player’s experience. Their favorites this year balanced structure with creative freedom, rewarding collaboration and imagination over strict mechanics. They highlighted games that encouraged players to build shared meaning through dialogue, worldbuilding, and emotional stakes rather than relying on heavy rulebooks or combat-centered play.
For the third year running, Brindlewood Bay continues to be my go-to role-playing game. Whether I’m putting it in front of longtime role-players or brand-new players, this cozy, spooky game appeals to just about every gaming group. Inspired by Murder, She Wrote, H.P. Lovecraft, and the last half-century of television detectives, players are a group of retirees solving mysteries in the titular town.
Character creation is quick, flavorful, and collaborative, and every mechanic rewards thinking creatively. A perilous situation can be saved by cutting to a role-played commercial, or a stroll down memory lane.
Each of the game’s mysteries are contained in just two to seven pages of setup, vivid NPCs, and clues. The mystery mechanic developed by Jason Cordova means there’s no one solution. Instead, the group “meddles” to collect clues, then works together to craft a plausible solution. The more clues found and included, the easier the die roll to determine whether your Mystery Mavens nab the bad guy and save the day. The results are by turns weird, hilarious, and suitable for any red-string conspiracy board.
It’s one of my favorite games to get to know a new group, or shake a long-established group out of its rut.
Brindlewood Bay
$15 $15 $15 at DriveThruRPG
The One Ring Starter Set
Set in Tolkien’s Middle-earth, The One Ring Starter Set captures the mood of quiet heroism and creeping darkness that defines the Shire and its neighbors. Perfect for newcomers, it introduces players to a streamlined version of the rules, pre-generated hobbit characters, and a beautifully crafted mini-campaign that feels both gentle and foreboding. The boxed set balances storytelling and exploration, making it easy to feel part of Tolkien’s world without overwhelming first-time players.
Twitter, senior editor, tabletop at AELGAMES
2021 was the 20th anniversary of Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings films, and it was also the year that we decided to share them all with our kids. Following an epic movie marathon over the holidays, we returned in January to find AELGAMES’s review copy of a rebooted version of The One Ring Starter Set right in our mailbox.
Free League Publishing puts out some of the most unique and beautiful art in the business, and this release does not disappoint. After a giddy few hours playing hobbits roaming around the Shire as a family, the set’s gorgeous map now adorns our living room wall.
The One Ring Starter Set
$46 $46 $46 at Amazon$47 at Free League Publishing
The Wagadu Chronicles
Set in a rich Afro-fantasy setting, The Wagadu Chronicles invites players to explore a world shaped by African mythology and culture through both tabletop and online play. Its storytelling emphasizes community, identity, and ancestral connection, offering deep role-play opportunities that stand apart from more traditional fantasy tropes. With stunning art direction and thoughtful worldbuilding, it provides a fresh and inclusive experience that celebrates diversity in every narrative choice.
Twitter, senior game developer at Steamforged Games, Mythic Grove Productions
Getting to play in fantasy worlds that are heavily inspired by African mythology and experience is something I still rarely get to experience, but The Wagadu Chronicles dropped me into this world and it was everything I could have asked for. With lore focused around spirits and leaning into magic that isn’t simply European arcana, it’s a whole new side to tabletop role-playing games. Hopefully it will inspire people to see ways that others applying their cultural experiences and history to the worlds they play in can take you to worlds truly beyond what we ever imagined in the best way. It’s also such an interesting experience because you can both play through this game as a video game, and then also use the free 5th edition supplement to play at the table – so you not only get to experience it as a pen-and-paper game, but you can experience it digitally at home on your own.
The Wagadu Chronicles
$0 $0 at Twin Drums
Bathwater Heights on a Particular Tuesday
On that strange Tuesday in Bathwater Heights, our group’s quiet mystery session turned into chaotic comedy. The missing-cat storyline spiraled into a political scandal involving the town’s mayor, three suspicious bakers, and a cursed teapot. Every roll felt like it teetered between triumph and disaster, and by the end, the table was filled with laughter and half-finished notes about “the incident at the bakery.” It captured the unpredictable charm that makes tabletop play so addictive.
Twitter, game designer, author of Apollo 47, and assistant professor of game design at Bradley University
In Bathwater Heights on a Particular Tuesday by Jackson Tegu, players remotely share a single lightly structured Google document and contribute to it all at once to tell a story about a handful of people having a perfectly average and therefore surreal day at the Cafe Bon Temps at the corner of Giaever Street and Mouth Avenue.
Sounds simple, right?
The story springs up as you play, a half-dozen people at a time typing in different parts of the document. Words are appearing all over the place, typed fast or slow, with misspellings or not. It’s like watching a dozen knowledgeable monkeys fly a plane – they are hopping all over and it is beautifully anarchic, but the plane stays aloft because it is the good sort of anarchism where the people love each other and want to see everything succeed.
It is easy to shift gears during the game – feverishly type, then sit back, and read, and enjoy. The passive reader seldom stays such for long, because reading reveals the bumps and questions. “I better steady the plane by adding in why Ms. Ng’s scooter disappeared between the Dinner and Night sections.”
It’s the best half-hour I spent playing games during my pal Rainbow’s birthday this year (and every year).
Bathwater Heights on a Particular Tuesday is currently in development, and only available to members of Jackson Tegu’s Patreon. A version is expected soon on itch.io.
Dead Friend: A Game of Necromancy
A haunting two-player RPG about grief and unfinished stories, Dead Friend: A Game of Necromancy transforms communication with the dead into a deeply personal ritual. One player takes the role of the living, the other the deceased, and together they recount shared memories through prompts that blend emotion, storytelling, and eerie atmosphere. The game’s use of real ritual elements-like drawing circles and burning letters-adds a poetic sincerity that makes each session unsettling and unforgettable.
Twitter, production assistant, NPR’s Code Switch
Dead Friend: A Game of Necromancy is a two-player storytelling game by Lucian Kahn that takes the form of a resurrection ritual. You play as friends; one is raising the other from the dead. A focus on dramatic tension keeps the game on track as players answer prompts determined by tarot card draws, developing the characters’ stories up to their current conflict. While the structure is tight, texture like the setting and tone are completely open-ended. One of my favorite scenes we set in the dumpster of a seedy desert casino, another within a drug trip in a space station ventilation shaft.
Two-player RPGs intimidated me at first. I tend toward lighter games for bigger groups, and these seemed intense – too intimate, too small. Dead Friend helped me understand the appeal: It is intimate, with space to bounce ideas around without being overwhelmed, with well-balanced agency between players in asymmetrical roles. And, in a year that made it hard for me to keep games on my schedule, having Dead Friend on deck as a self-contained, two-to-three-hour experience helped resurrect my ability to play at all.
Dead Friend: A Game of Necromancy
$10 $10 $10 at itch.io (PDF)$15 at Indie Press Revolution (physical)$10 at DriveThruRPG (PDF)
Monster of the Week
Monster of the Week captures the thrill of episodic mystery-solving, inspired by shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural. Players take on roles such as the Chosen, the Expert, or the Monstrous, each driving the story forward through character-focused drama and tense monster encounters. The rules encourage teamwork, improvisation, and a cinematic pace, making every session feel like a fresh episode in an ongoing series of strange events.
Cody Pondsmith, game designer, R. Talsorian Games (Cyberpunk Red, The Witcher TRPG)
This year I’ve been lucky enough to be part of a lot of great games, but the standout has to be Monster of the Week by Evil Hat Productions. This rules-light RPG uses a variation of the Powered by the Apocalypse system to tell the story of an eclectic group of monster slayers using their various tricks, tools, and magical powers to hunt down creatures of all shapes and sizes. The game’s playbooks (pre-generated character templates) allow you to create a wide range of characters by making a series of set choices and start playing in minutes.
Growing up with more system-heavy RPGs like Cyberpunk 2020 and Pathfinder, it’s a nice change of pace to play a system-light game with a heavy focus on storytelling sometimes. Monster of the Week‘s streamlined resolution system allows you to focus on playing your character and moving the story forward without getting slowed down by additive math and complex rules. Of course, the trade-off is that the game relies heavily on the game master to adjudicate when rolls should be made and what the results of those rolls should be, but the open-ended system gives solid guidance when things get tricky.
Monster of the Week
$12 $12 $25 at Evil Hat Productions (book and digital)$12 at DriveThruRPG$22 at Amazon
For the Queen
A card-based storytelling game, For the Queen quickly became a favorite around the table for its elegant mix of simplicity and emotion. Players answer prompts that reveal their characters’ feelings and loyalties toward their monarch, weaving a shared tale filled with tension and heart. Each session feels unique, often leading to unexpected twists and deeply personal choices that linger long after the cards are set aside.
Twitter, co-founder of Mythic Grove Productions
I’ve never defended the queen; not once. If that phrase makes you giddy in your seat and hungry for more collaborative storytelling, then you have more than likely played For the Queen, the card-based improv RPG by Alex Roberts and Evil Hat Productions. I’ve become ensorcelled by the mechanic of turn-based role-play that this game definitively masters. No one knows what character they play until a card is turned and a question is asked. Only then can you create whole-cloth your character and the world around your retinue of trusted individuals. Though the queen may be leading this journey, they are a character that never acts except through the scenes described by players. The questions are poignant, and at our tables have come to have almost prophetic import, always appearing perfectly to drive the story along. When a thing is said it becomes true, which makes generous storytelling boundless. Often the best plot twists for my characters have been given to me through the stories of another at the table. Face love, betrayal, uncertainty, and unwavering faith as your party struggles to come to terms with whether or not your queen is worthy of being defended!
For the Queen
$12 $12 $20 at Evil Hat Productions (physical)$12 at Evil Hat Productions (digital)
Blades in the Dark
Set in a gritty city of crime and ambition, Blades in the Dark captures the thrill of bold heists and desperate survival. Players take on the roles of scoundrels building their crew in a haunted industrial metropolis where every decision carries weight. Its unique mechanics for teamwork, stress, and consequences turn each session into a tense blend of planning, risk, and daring improvisation that keeps players on edge from start to finish.
Twitter, actor (Assassin’s Creed Origins, Raised by Wolves), Silver Rain Games
Blades in the Dark is an incredibly tense, beautiful, and accessible game. Truly conjured up to have the players and the Dungeon Master on the edge of their seat. What’s so brilliant about it is just how easy it is to pick up and feel like you’re in control. An easy game to involve yourself in, but a tough game to master. Fantastic game design.
Blades in the Dark
$20 $20 $21 at Amazon$20 at DriveThruRPG
The Quiet Year
The Quiet Year turns map-making into a shared story of survival, community, and uncertainty. Players sketch a settlement rebuilding after collapse, deciding how to use scarce resources and responding to strange discoveries each week. Its mix of drawing, discussion, and silent reflection creates unexpected tension and tenderness, making each session feel like a fragile memory of a world trying to heal.
Keerthi Sridharan, freelance writer and AELGAMES contributor
The Quiet Year has made the rounds in TTRPG circles for years, but I only got around to playing it a few months ago. Our group planned on running it as a world-building prologue to a new campaign. It quickly morphed and grew into a beautiful, touching, and uniquely funny journey, and we spent four hours immersed in debates between factions of surfer wizards and cowboy skaters, sketching out cursed mountain ranges, ultimately crying over a mysterious sickness that snuffed out the lives of every child on the map overnight. The Quiet Year deserves its flowers as a stand-alone play experience, guiding players through the game with a deck of gorgeously illustrated cards, appropriately creepy skull tokens, and prompts that put the weight of a world – your world – on your shoulders. The game can also be played with a standard deck of playing cards and the Oracle, a reference sheet that tells you what prompt each card represents.
The Quiet Year
$7 $7 $7 at Buried Without Ceremony (PDF)$48 at Buried Without Ceremony (physical)$8 at DriveThruRPG (PDF)
Battlelords of the 23rd Century
Set in a gritty sci-fi universe of mercenaries, mega-corporations, and interstellar war, Battlelords of the 23rd Century throws players into fast-paced tactical combat filled with high-tech gear and wild alien species. Its detailed rules and dark humor make every mission unpredictable, whether you’re blasting through a hostile planet or negotiating with shady off-world traders. For players who love deep customization and bold space action, this one delivers pure chaotic fun.
Twitter, writer, content producer, lead designer of Into The Mother Lands
My favorite TTRPG of the year was my beloved Battlelords of the 23rd Century.
I’ve been playing Battlelords since 1st edition when I was in high school, and the current 6th edition is the best one yet. The original Battelords tagline was “roleplaying something besides elves,” but I have often described it as “Aliens meets The 5th Element,” where an incredible assortment of fascinating alien races are waiting to explore, such as:
- Eridani Sword Saints: Basically Klingon space samurai; my favorites.
- Phentari: Murderous squid people who eat humans as a delicacy.
- Cizerak: Intelligent big cats that mount cannons on their backs like tanks.
- Fott: Genetically engineered redneck rabbits that may well be the ultimate warriors.
And so very many more.
If you want to scratch that sci-fi itch in a new and different way, I HIGHLY recommend checking out Battlelords of the 23rd Century!
How to get started with Dragonlance Shadow of the Dragon Queen
Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen is a 5th Edition D&D adventure module set during the War of the Lance, taking characters from level 1 to 11 with a focus on war, dragons, and Krynn’s lore.
Required Materials
You’ll need the core D&D 5e rulebooks: Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, and Monster Manual. The adventure book itself provides all specific setting details, maps, and encounters-no other Dragonlance books are required.
Character Creation
Create level 1 characters tied to the village of Solace or the late knight Ispin Greenshield (e.g., via backstory hooks like family ties or a delivered letter). Use Krynn-specific options like the Lunar Sorcery Sorcerer subclass, Knight of Solamnia background, or draconian/corruption mechanics for flavor.
Adventure Flow
Start in Solace at Inspin’s funeral, building ties to locals before the Dragon Army invades Vogler-run “Prelude to War” side treks like Broken Silence or Eye in the Sky to hook players. Progress through war battles, Northern Wastes sandbox exploration (with NPC ally Darrett), and key sites like the City of Lost Names, culminating in a dragonlance reforging and Lord Soth showdown.
DM Tips
Emphasize horror with draconians and fear checks; blend large-scale battles (using mass combat rules) with personal fights. Pace sandbox areas with rumors and random encounters, and run both Vogler invasion options for scope. Prep music and visuals for atmosphere, like dragon sightings or rising cities.
What character backgrounds work best for Shadow of the Dragon Queen
Knight of Solamnia and Mage of High Sorcery are the standout backgrounds introduced specifically for Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen, tying directly into Krynn’s lore of chivalric orders and arcane towers. They grant unique feats like Squire of Solamnia or Initiate of High Sorcery, plus proficiencies that enhance roleplaying during the War of the Lance.
Recommended Backgrounds
These options immerse characters in the adventure’s themes of heroism, war, and ancient conflicts:
| Background | Why It Fits Best | Key Benefits in SotDQ |
|---|---|---|
| Knight of Solamnia | Embodies honor-bound warriors fighting the Dragon Army; perfect for fighters or paladins starting in Solace. | Squire of Solamnia feat, Animal Handling/History/Insight proficiencies, ties to Ispin Greenshield’s plot hook. |
| Mage of High Sorcery | Suits spellcasters navigating Krynn’s magic towers amid rising evil; great for wizards or sorcerers (especially Lunar Sorcery). | Initiate of High Sorcery feat, Arcana/History/Religion proficiencies, tests of magical loyalty. |
| Soldier | Reflects frontline troops or mercenaries in the escalating war; versatile for any martial class. | Athletics/Intimidation skills, military rank for NPC interactions during invasions. |
| Folk Hero | Captures villagers rising against draconians, linking to Solace’s defense. | Survival/Animal Handling, rustic hospitality for early quests like Prelude to War. |
| Sage or Acolyte | Fits scholars or kender explorers uncovering lost lore in the Northern Wastes. | Arcana/Religion for dragonlance reforging and ancient ruins. |
Tips for Use
All backgrounds in the book grant a free feat (Skilled or Tough if not book-specific), plus another at level 4 to handle beefier encounters. Tie backstories to Solace locals or Ispin’s letter for seamless integration-avoid outliers like Criminal unless flavored as a redeemed spy. This setup balances combat, exploration, and Krynn-specific heroism.
