Some RPGs take place in a brutal world of violence and monsters or at the end of the world, which signifies the stakes of your mission. But sometimes, even in the bleakest of scenarios, games manage to incorporate humor into a side quest that can be a breath of fresh air.

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Side quests give the game some great replay value and getting them right by incorporating humor is one of the best ways of expanding the game. Just because a game is serious with high stakes, doesn’t mean you can’t have a bit of fun on the side, which makes these games even better.

10 Elden Ring

Alexander’s Quest

Elden Ring

RPG Action Released February 25, 2022 Developer(s) From Software Publisher(s) Bandai Namco Entertainment, From Software Platform(s) PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X Powered by Expand Collapse

Elden Ring is filled with hidden side quests given by NPCs that are usually very rewarding. One of these quests is that of Iron Fist Alexander’s, who is a large living jar that you first encounter around the weeping peninsula area.

Once you meet him for the first time, you’ll run into him throughout your playthrough where he often finds himself stuck or trapped. It’s hilarious to see him around like that in a world like Elden Ring where everything is either rotting or falling apart, and Alexander finds himself in the most absurd of situations. The entire questline is an emotional rollercoaster and a deviation from Elden Ring’s bleak and intense gameplay.

9 Oblivion

Quest For Sheogorath

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

RPG Released March 20, 2006 Developer(s) Bethesda Publisher(s) Bethesda Platform(s) PC, PS3, Xbox 360 Powered by Expand Collapse

Bethesda is no stranger to side quests that turn out to be more fun than the main story. Oblivion is no different and, though the main game is hilarious with countless glitchy interactions and dialogue, it’s rooted in seriousness and high stakes. In this side quest, you summon the fan-favorite Daedric Prince of Madness, and he tasks you with simulating the end of days to traumatize a bunch of unsuspecting Khajit villagers.

Sheogorath does this kind of stuff for the sake of entertainment, and you can aid him by poisoning the villager’s sheep and attracting rats to their settlement. His humorous and chaotic personality is a great addition to The Elder Scrolls series, adding some much-needed silliness to Tamriel.

8 Skyrim

A Night To Remember

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

RPG Action Adventure Released November 11, 2011 Developer(s) Bethesda Game Studios Publisher(s) Bethesda Softworks Platform(s) PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S Powered by Expand Collapse

Skyrim has the same vibe as Oblivion, with the bugs and glitches providing the bulk of the humor in the game. The story follows the Dragonborn, the return of the Dragons, and their leader, Alduin. Alduin is supposed to bring about the end of days according to prophecy, so you can guess how serious the story is.

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In one specific quest, ‘A Night to Remember’, you have a little too much to drink alongside a Daedric Prince and have to figure out what happened during that time. People yell at you for everything you did the night before, and you’re left to pick up the pieces. Oh, and, in your drunken stupor, you confess your love to a Hagraven who can’t wait to consummate the relationship.

7 Red Dead Redemption 2

Side Content

Red Dead Redemption 2

Action Adventure Released October 26, 2018 Developer(s) Rockstar Games Publisher(s) Rockstar Games Platform(s) PS4, Xbox One, PC, Stadia Powered by Expand Collapse

Red Dead Redemption is filled with mature themes of morality, loyalty, and some dark aspects within the main story. In contrast, the side content adds some weirdness to the Wild West. There are so many silly quests in RDR2s side content, like Arthur's drunk antics after a night of heavy drinking.

One in particular follows a man who needs help recovering his circus animals: a donkey disguised as a Zebra and a cougar painted to be a tiger. Logic would say that the missing lion would also be a harmless animal, but it turns out to be an actual lion, and the false sense of security Arthur has is hilarious.

6 Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Really Really Bad Day

Assassin's Creed Odyssey

Action RPG Open-World Released October 15, 2018 Developer(s) Ubisoft Quebec Publisher(s) Ubisoft Platform(s) PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC, Stadia Powered by Expand Collapse

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is set in ancient Greece and isn’t afraid to delve into mature themes like politics and the consequences of one’s actions. But that all goes out the window with some side quests introduced in the lost tales of Greece DLC. You help a village by defeating some pirates and later learn that they were actually reinforcements.

You then help a blacksmith get his equipment only for him to trip and die being crushed by the very tools you got him. You then find the General’s horse only for him to ride it off a cliff. If that wasn’t enough, you run into a hero who insists his helmet is fireproof, and you test it, but guess how that turns out. By the end, you’ll be laughing at the absurdity of these everyday situations in a serious game like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.

5 Hitman

‘Elusive Targets’

Hitman 2

Stealth Action Released November 13, 2018 Developer(s) IO Interactive Publisher(s) Warner Bros. Interactive Platform(s) Xbox One, PS4, PC Powered by Expand Collapse

The modern Hitman Trilogy is no stranger to silliness when it comes to Agent 47’s targets, with some quests that are humorous while also maintaining a serious and dark tone throughout the game.

The best of these silly victims of assassinations is an NPC voiced and designed after Sean Bean, who played Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. The developers of hitman decided to have a bit of fun by making Sean Bean the hardest target in the game because of his fame for playing characters that often die early in a show or movie.

4 Fallout 4

Silver Shroud

Fallout 4

RPG Action Released November 10, 2015 Developer(s) Bethesda Publisher(s) Bethesda Platform(s) PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S Powered by Expand Collapse

Fallout 4 is another Bethesda game that has serious undertones like the fact that you must find your child in the main quest, making it feel as if you’re pressed on time. Its side quests are often silly and light-hearted though, with the quest ‘Silver Shroud’ taking the cake in terms of humor and absurdity.

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You play a hero, a bloodthirsty one for that matter, by bringing about vigilante justice with a silver SMG and a costume of the Silver Shroud. Pretending to be a hero with a radio, listening in to find information on your next victim, is much more fun than finding your lost kid.

3 The Witcher 3

Bureaucracy

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

RPG Action Adventure Released May 19, 2015 Developer(s) CD Projekt Red Platform(s) Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S Powered by Expand Collapse

In a war-torn world full of monsters and evil men, Geralt is one of the few that stands for the righteous and, as a Witcher, will slay monsters until he comes up with a retirement plan. Though the world feels bleak and violent, there are times of hilarity, such as when the bureaucracy gets the better of Geralt.

In the side quest Paper Chase, Geralt starts by trying to make a withdrawal at a bank after getting some money. When he gets to the bank, he learns that he has been declared dead, and that’s where the bureaucracy comes in. Geralt has to go back and forth filling out forms and proving he isn’t dead.

2 Cyberpunk 2077

Side Content

Cyberpunk 2077

RPG Action Released December 10, 2020 Developer(s) CD Projekt Red Publisher(s) CD Projekt Red Platform(s) PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2, PC Powered by Expand Collapse

Cyberpunk 2077 is set in a dystopian future with a character-driven storyline, following V trying his best to stay himself as the chip in his head slowly replaces his personality with that of Johnny Silverhand. The stakes are extremely high, but this game is still filled to the brim with hilarious side content.

From zany characters that are absurd in their design and dialogue, to helping a man with a broken implant, there’s no shortage of silly content in this game that provides a much-needed contrast to the main story.

1 Yakuza

So Many Silly Side Quests

Yakuza is pretty much a silly game with some serious content and is popular because of its side quests. Imagine the most absurd scenario that you can, and now imagine it in the Yakuza series, and it will most certainly have a side quest about it.

Whether it’s ending up at a brothel where everyone wears a diaper, or mishearing a woman in need and getting her a pizza instead of a visa, Yakuza will always have something absurd going on in its generally serious setting.

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