Growing up, I never played Dungeons & Dragons. It was probably a combination of the game seeming overwhelming with its many races, classes, and rules to learn, but also because it seemed like it was too dorky for a kid who was already spending most of his time playing video games--cool ones, though. However, and as my eventual career path would prove, I was lying to myself. I found the appeal of Dungeons & Dragons growing stronger as I discovered hilarious shows like Nerd Poker and, more recently, Dimension 20. I was starting to learn the basics of Dungeons & Dragons' rules despite only tuning in for laughs, but everyone I knew who played the game was already very experienced. Who wants to play with someone who's still learning how to tack on modifiers and roll for initiative? Video games seemed like a good alternative, but choosing one wasn't so easy.

There have been countless official Dungeons & Dragons games released over the years, though not all of them have stuck to the tabletop version's gameplay style or rules, and most of them--Baldur's Gate 3 being the biggest exception--use older D&D rulesets. Because they use old rulesets and often different game mechanics, these other games are much less useful for actually learning how to play D&D.

Enter Xbox Game Pass and Solasta: Crown of the Magister, a game you probably haven't heard of, especially if you aren't staying up-to-date on all things D&D.