Set in the Forgotten Realms — one of the most developed fantasy universes in fiction — BG3 gives players access to 50 years of D&D world-building. The Sword Coast, the city of Baldur's Gate, the Underdark — all of it has published history that the game engages with rather than ignores. Players who know the D&D universe will find constant references and callbacks; those who do not will find a world with obvious depth even without prior knowledge.

The Witcher world is rare in fantasy: its cultural inspirations are Slavic rather than Tolkienian, producing a world of different myths, different aesthetics, and different moral frameworks than most Western fantasy. The magic system is defined and limited — Geralt's signs are tools, not solutions — which makes their use feel grounded. The world's political complexity — wars, occupations, ethnic tensions — gives it a texture that pure heroic fantasy rarely achieves.

Elden Ring's lore — co-written by George R.R. Martin — is a tragedy of divine ambition, family betrayal, and cosmological collapse. It is not a typical fantasy setting: there are no simple heroes or clean villains, only figures whose actions, billions of years in the past, have left a shattered world for the player to navigate. Engaging with the lore produces a genuinely moving experience. Ignoring it produces a still-excellent action game. Both are valid.