The tabletop RPG giant Dungeons and Dragons made its migration to the world of video games, bringing successful tales set in its worlds to gamers far and wide. They included many features of the TTRPG, such as customizing a character, selecting their race and class, as well as the chance to roleplay with companions.
With the roleplaying, as well as decisions players can make throughout the game, there come the options to portray a character who is not typically heroic, or even heroic at all, but rather somewhat evil in their words and actions.
6 Divinity: Original Sin 2
While not a D&D game by name, Larian's flagship RPG series Divinity Original Sin is one by nature, which received a sequel that saw players switching from a Source Hunter to a Sourcerer, with the chance of becoming the next Divine in the game's twelfth hour. Packed full of content that players can truly get themselves lost in, DoS2 has a lot to offer, and many choices to be made along the way.
While it lacks any true moral compass mechanics wise, or D&D's 'alignment chart', the player characters have the option to do some acts that can only be described as evil. Players can truly let loose and give in to the urges to partake in evil acts.
5 Planescape Torment
One of the earlier D&D games is Planescape Torment, a cult hit by Black Isle Studios that did not make the numbers, but wowed the fans who did play it. It was full of D&D goodness that was sure to appease fans, from the setting to lore. Players will control the Nameless One, a man who resurrects upon death with no memories and a different personality than before, making him the perfect blank slate for players as the game opens upon him waking from his most recent passing.
This game opens the doors for players of every alignment, allowing them to alter their personality and morality. In the case of Planescape Torment, this allowed the players to dabble in the evil alignments of the tabletop, unlocking the option to play an overwhelmingly evil coded character that would challenge even the most hardened of players.
4 Neverwinter Nights 2
The second installment in the Neverwinter Nights game series, which brought two D&D adventures in video game form. It takes place in Faerun, one of the most popular D&D settings, bringing in locations many long-time fans would recognize. Players have the option to recruit party members or hirelings in their battle against the evil of King of Shadows.
It seems like a plot ripe for an epic do-gooder hero intent in saving the world and all its people, even if it meant great sacrifices. But that isn't necessarily the case, with the player often given choices, with some options leading them down a good path, and others slightly more evil in intention. The Mask of the Betrayer DLC offers even more chances to be evil, and makes the dark path more interesting with a new hunger mechanic.
3 Icewind Dale
This classic RPG deserves some time in the spotlight and out from Baldur's Gate's shadow as it is an excellent RPG in its own right, set in the fabled Icewind Dale and lauded for its excellent combat system, which is one of the games main focuses. But that is not to same the game is bereft of other RPG elements, with players creating a part of up to 6 characters and investigating the source of evil haunting Kulduhar and the roads that lead there.
Along with being an enjoyable RPG in its own right, players are also handed the freedom to stray from the path of light, allowing them to select options that are evil, which can give players access to evil-aligned specific magic items, but there could be some drawbacks. They may lose out on some dialogue, or once-friendly NPCs could grow hostile. But would a truly evil person even really care?
2 Temple of Elemental Evil
For players that want a game that remains true to D&D's core combat mechanics, they need look no further than Temple of Elemental Evil. Based on a TTRPG module of the same name, it follows the same storyline, in which a temple became home to an evil presence, which was left up to the heroes to investigate and defeat.
With the main plot of the game revolving around defeating evil, it would seem there is little room to play an evil character, but Temple of Elemental Evil does not completely exclude players from this possibility. In fact, players can even choose their alignment from the start, and are free to make evil-leaning choices.
1 Baldur's Gate 3
The latest installment in the Baldur's Gate series brought fans Baldur's Gate 3, lovingly crafted by Larian Studios, and RPG of epic proportions with all the D&D bells and whistles. Players control an origin character or craft their own original character who has been kidnapped by Mindflayers and infected with a parasitic tadpole that will transform them into one of the tentacle-faced monsters unless they find a way to remove it.
There are many choices the plater can make the verge on the more evil side, which companions may approve or disapporive, and can truly change the direction the game goes in. Not only that, players can create a Dark Urge character, which truly adds another layer of dark depth to the characters and the choices they can make. Players wishing to play an evil character will find much to enjoy with Baldur's Gate 3.