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For a time, Game of Thrones was on top of the world. Based on George R.R. Martin’s still-unfinished A Song of Ice and Fire novels, HBO’s show was the last vestige of monoculture from its premiere in 2011 to 2019. Its eighth and final season completely changed the perception of the whole series with its unsatisfying character resolutions, rushed plotlines, and all-around questionable writing decisions. (Real ones know the show’s true downfall began earlier with season 5, but I digress.)
HBO and its parent company Warner Bros. Discovery have certainly tried to keep Game of Thrones in the zeitgeist even after the disastrous end to the original show. The franchise has soldiered on with the well-received (for now) spinoffs House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, though their popularity is a fraction of the original TV series.
Despite the popularity of Game of Thrones, it’s never produced a truly great video game. Even though its world seems ripe for a The Witcher 3 or Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 type of RPG, we’re still waiting on that must-play Game of Thrones video game. Some developers have tried and come close, but there’s no one great game to rule them all. (Wait, wrong fantasy series.)
A few games were released early on during the show’s original run. The first was the strategy game A Game of Thrones: Genesis in September 2011, based on Martin’s novels. It holds a 53 on Metacritic, but we’ll give it a pass for being the first stab at an ASOIAF game. 2012’s RPG Game of Thrones didn’t fare any better.
Telltale got in on the game with Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series (these companies really have to get more creative with these titles), which was released episodically from December 2014 to November 2015. It told a story that ran alongside HBO’s show, following a House loyal to the Starks in the aftermath of season 3’s The Red Wedding.
Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series received an OK reception, but your enjoyment of it really depends on how much you like the Telltale formula of playable TV shows. Only some player choices really matter, and if choice-based narratives aren’t your jam (especially one that assumes you already know everything about the TV show), there’s little else to love.
Various Game of Thrones games have come out since, like the browser-based MMO Game of Thrones: Winter is Coming. Mobile gamers have no shortage of options with Game of Thrones Ascent, Game of Thrones: Conquest, Game of Thrones: Beyond the Wall, and more getting released since 2013. Your mileage may vary on how worthwhile they are, but I imagine a mobile game isn’t what folks are looking for when they’re hoping for an interactive Game of Thrones masterpiece.
The free-to-play Game of Thrones: Kingsroad might be fans’ best option for a Westeros-set RPG. It certainly has the look of an AAA game and touts hack-and-slash gameplay combined with a story-driven adventure. However, players are divided on it as it has over 3,300 “Mixed” player reviews on Steam and a 57 on Metacritic, with microtransactions being a pain point. Free-to-play, amirite?
2018’s Reigns: Game of Thrones might be the best GOT video game around. Its iOS and PC versions hold 84s on Metacritic (pay no mind to the Nintendo Switch version’s lower score of 74). However, its success comes with something of a caveat; it’s a strategy game spinoff of Nerial’s Reigns and Reigns: Her Majesty. The Game of Thrones version takes the established, well-received “swipe ‘em up” formula of those games and throws a Game of Thrones-colored can of paint over it. Reigns: Game of Thrones does deserve some credit though for actually being good, as other entries aren’t, like the mixed-bag Reigns: The Witcher.
When Warner Bros. shut down Monolith Productions and canceled its Wonder Woman game, WB said it would restructure and focus on four main properties going forward for video games, with Game of Thrones being one. We’ll see what it produces in the future, as those other properties (Harry Potter, Mortal Kombat, and DC) already have a recent track record of proven success.
Next up for Game of Thrones is the real-time strategy title Game of Thrones: War for Westeros. It certainly looks flashy, and the RTS genre is a good fit for the series known for large-scale skirmishes like the Battle of Blackwater Bay. Still, I can’t help but hope for this franchise to get its The Witcher 3 or Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 moment. I want to wander Westeros as a sellsword or wayward knight, making snarky comments and eating whole chickens along the way.
