The 15 Best Bethesda Games

Bethesda delivers some of the most ambitious video games in modern gaming, perfecting the open-world RPG as players know it. Like every remarkable gaming corporation, Bethesda always strives to top itself with each new release, creating larger and larger environments for players to venture through time and time again.

From their earliest success with The Elder Scrolls series to their later sci-fi epics with Starfield, here are some of the greatest Bethesda games of all time, starting with the very best.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011)

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It speaks volumes about The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim that people still play it over ten years after its original release. More than a mere video game alone, Skyrim is a pop culture phenomenon, transcending its medium in the same manner as Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty, or Nintendo’s Mario series.

Advancing The Elder Scrolls series in all the right ways, Skyrim placed even greater emphasis on players’ individual choices, tailoring the entire game to their specific play style and preferences. Coupled with that is the massive open-world environment for players to explore, as well as the dozens of story missions available for players to select. Between the atmospheric settings, endless quests, and fine-tuned character creation, it’s one of the greatest R.P.G.s ever created, as well as the finest release from Bethesda games to date.

Fallout 3 (2008)

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It’s fascinating to note that two of Bethesda games' best titles–Fallout 3 and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion–saw a release in 2008. Perhaps the greatest year in Bethesda games' existence, both games set the standard for the traditional R.P.G. moving forward, influencing countless games in the process.

With Fallout 3, Bethesda introduced a new sense of immersive gameplay when it came to the Fallout universe. Propelling the Fallout series through its utilization of 3D graphics and real-time action, Bethesda reinvented the Fallout game with Fallout 3, abandoning the isometric perspective of its predecessors. With a larger environment and an A-list celebrity voice cast (including appearances from Liam Neeson and Malcolm McDowell), Fallout 3 ranks as the most revolutionary entry in the Fallout series thus far.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (2006)

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No one can overstate the importance of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion in the development of the modern R.P.G. Seizing upon the advancements made with 2002’s Morrowind, the long-awaited fourth chapter in The Elder Scrolls series brought a new level of sophistication to the entire fantasy genre, selling the idea that players step foot into another world of magical creatures and dense, fully-realized settings. Rather than the loose narrative of Morrowind, Oblivion expressed a deeper focus on story and character as well, achieving a fine balance between the open-world structure of Morrowind and the endless storylines possibilities in Skyrim.

Starfield (2023)

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The most recent release from Bethesda games, Starfield towers as the most expansive game the company has ever worked on. Upping the ante from their previous series in every way imaginable, Starfield gives players not just one or two landscapes to explore–it gives them literal galaxies worth of unique, fully-rendered worlds. Tossing every conventional rule surrounding R.P.G.s out the window, Starfield crafts a sci-fi universe as rich and filled with life as Star Wars or Star Trek, giving players the opportunity to travel the stars, battle aliens and space pirates, and save entire planets from intergalactic disasters.

The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (2002)

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The debut effort from Bethesda Game Studios, The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind continues to live on as one of the most celebrated additions to The Elder Scrolls universe yet. The Fallout 3 of The Elder Scrolls series, Bethesda made a plethora of advancements when it came to Morrowind, setting the prototypical blueprint for all future Elder Scrolls games moving forward (not to mention role-playing adventure games in general).

By prioritizing its nuanced open-world setting over its plot, Morrowind serves as a perfect dramatic precursor to games like Fallout 3 or Skyrim, heightening the amount of influence players had on their own storyline and character progression. Without a genre-bending game like Morrowind, who knows what the state of open-world gaming might be?

Fallout: New Vegas (2010)

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Though Bethesda Game Studios didn’t develop Fallout: New Vegas, the finished product bears all the signature elements players associate with a tried-and-true Fallout title. A fan-favorite game among avid Fallout fans, Obsidian Entertainment took what might’ve become a subpar spin-off game and made it one of the most entertaining additions to the Fallout series players have ever seen. While its creative implementation of post-apocalyptic Las Vegas is worthy of praise, New Vegas’s writing is where the game shines brightest, steeping players in a rising tide of narrative choices, storylines, and three-dimensional N.P.C.s.

Fallout 4 (2015)

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Like every new addition to the Fallout series, Fallout 4 introduced a new degree of immersion when it came to its in-game elements, including more realistic graphics, a larger setting, and depth of character customization and progression. While the game does suffer from a more fragmented utilization of an R.P.G. format, Fallout 4 still deserves players attention through its sheer size and ambition. As one might expect, players can spend huge blocks of time wandering its huge map, battling with opportunistic scavengers, mutated monsters, and other menacing creatures in the post-apocalyptic wasteland of New England.

Doom (2016)

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Like most games on the second half of this list, Bethesda Games published Doom rather than developing it, with id Software doing most of the heavy lifting. An ambitious remake of the 1993 gaming classic, 2016’s Doom brings the heavy metal atmosphere of the original game to life with this pitch-perfect first-person shooter. An homage to 1990s video games in general, ‘16’s Doom’s improved graphics, thrash soundtrack, and nightmarish storyline make it one of the most welcome additions to the first-person shooter genre in recent years.

Dishonored (2012)

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Another non-Bethesda Game Studios-release, Dishonored is the product of Bethesda Softworks’ collaboration with Arkane Studios, the main production company behind the short-lived Dishonored series. Despite releasing a total of two games in the Dishonored saga, Arkane’s impressive work on Dishonored speaks for itself. Evoking a dreary, gothic setting with its depiction of a steampunk metropolis crippled by plague, crime, and political corruption, it’s like a wondrous Victorian cross between BioShock and the Assassin’s Creed series.

Wolfenstein: The New Order (2014)

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Like 2016’s Doom, Wolfenstein: The New Order breathed renewed life into the long-stagnated Wolfenstein series, resurrecting the WW2-themed first-person shooter for a new generation of players. A far cry from the more realistic first-person shooters presented in Call of Duty or Battlefield, The New Order transposes its main narrative to an alternative version of the 1960s–a dystopian reality where the Axis Powers have won the war. With Tarantino-esque levels of violence, language, and off-kilter, The New Order’s over-the-top presentation helped win the Wolfenstein series renown after a half-decade of inactivity.

Dishonored 2 (2016)

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Two years after their release of 2014’s lauded Dishonored, Arkane Studios returned with an exciting new addition to their steampunk adventure series with Dishonored 2. Moving its fictional universe from the frigid cobblestone streets of Dunwall to the Southern European island of Karnaca, the game gives players the choice to step into the role of displaced monarch Emily Kaldwin or her sworn protector, Corvo Attano. Like all standout sequels, Dishonored 2 took everything that worked with its predecessor and expanded on it in new and exciting ways, from its unique setting and non-linear storyline to its more focused emphasis on stealth gameplay.

Doom Eternal (2020)

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Following in the footsteps of 2016’s Doom remake, Doom Eternal draws on an original storyline to rope players in and keep them engaged throughout. Set 14 years after the events of the first game, Doom Eternal depicts humanity’s ongoing struggle to defend Earth from the invading demons of Hades. Though some aspects of the story are threadbare, to say the least, Doom Eternal’s grunge-inspired tone, explosive action, and focus on fast-paced platforming make it a more than satisfactory sequel to the Doom series. Its biggest crime? The lack of a fleshed out competitive multiplayer.

The Evil Within (2014)

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By the time Bethesda published the Tango Gameworks-developed The Evil Within (2015), it hadn't spent much time in the survival horror space. That didn't stop it from helping release one of the genre's best. Taking a page out of Silent Hill, Saw, and vintage slasher films, The Evil Within follows a lone detective’s progression through a horrifying world crowded with monsters and other demented creatures. While its main storyline is forgettable and its characters little more than horror cliches, the terrifying elements of The Evil Within make it a palpable survival horror game on par with Dead Space or Resident Evil.

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (2017)

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Continuing in the same creative direction as The New Order, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus once again focuses on the underground battle between freedom-fighter B.J. Blazkowicz and the Axis Powers in an alternative 1960s America. Using the same first-person mechanics as its preceding title, The New Colossus offers few innovations when it comes to its basic gameplay (aside from the introduction of dual-wielding weapons). However, the game once again crafts a taut adventure around Blazkowicz and his close-knit allies, ensuring a game loaded with action, humor, and some poignant condemnations of fascist politics.

The Evil Within 2 (2017)

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The Evil Within 2 had every opportunity to be a conventional and completely safe sequel, following its predecessor very closely to pander to fans. However, Tango shifted gears a little, providing the returning protagonist, Sebastian Castellanos, with a more open world to explore.  Within this world resides horrors that really exceed some of The Evil Within's, specifically the singing ghost Anima, who frequently stalks Sebastian. Still, the sequel didn't quite live up to the first, failing to really push the envelope in ways the series was perfectly poised for. Nevertheless, the 2017 release ups the terror factor from The Evil Within, forcing players to come face-to-face with cosmic horrors straight out of their worst, most bizarre nightmares.