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// the independent publication for AI RPGs

AI RPGs,
taken seriously.

Arcanum is an independent publication covering AI RPGs — the platforms that turn a language model into a real game master. We play every one of them first-hand and score it on a single published rubric, so you can tell which ones hold up over a long campaign, and which quietly fall apart.

Read the benchmark → Browse the reviews

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Guide 16 min read

OpenRouter vs NanoGPT vs Chutes (2026): Which API Provider for Roleplay?

OpenRouter, NanoGPT and Chutes all give you an API key for Janitor AI, SillyTavern or Chub, and they charge in three different ways. This comparison covers the fees, what one roleplay session costs on each, what is still free, how the two subscriptions compare, which models each one has, privacy, and the limits you will meet. Built from each provider's own pricing pages, documentation and public model lists, read on 11 October 2026. We did not test speed or quality.

// the benchmark

Somebody had to measure this category.

Every AI RPG platform you can actually play, scored on the same seven axes from first-hand play — not from marketing copy, not from a press kit. 28 platforms, one rubric, every score published with its working.

Two of the seven axes have no top score anywhere in the field. Nobody has solved Memory & Continuity and Longevity — not one platform on the board.

Arcanum AI RPG Benchmark, 2026 H2 edition: field average and highest score reached on each of the seven axes, across 28 platforms. Scale 0 to 5.
Axis Field average Highest reached
Signature Design 3.27 5
NPC Fidelity 3.16 5
Memory & Continuity 2.94 4.25 · unclaimed
Player Agency 2.79 5
Determinism & Fairness 2.71 5
Longevity 2.66 4 · unclaimed
Mechanical Depth 2.61 5

field average · ceiling reached · outer ring = 5

2026 H2 edition · 28 platforms · 7 axes · CC BY 4.0 · doi:10.5281/zenodo.21721591

The full board → How we score →

// how these numbers were made

01

The Codex

News, features, guides and interviews — what launched, what changed, and how to get the most out of the games you play.

266 articles →
03

Public Games

The best AI RPGs you can play right now — published GPTs, Gems, and Claude projects — rated and sorted by model and genre.

16 games →
04

Tools

Free browser tools for running better campaigns — prompt builder, character cards, context budget, campaign memory. No signup, nothing sent anywhere.

4 tools →

// from our workshop

Research and tools

Besides the coverage, Arcanum builds two things: open research on the field, and free tools that run entirely in your browser.

Arcanum RPGs is an independent publication about AI roleplaying games — the platforms and games where a language model runs the story as your game master. We publish news, hands-on reviews, guides and features, and we maintain the Arcanum AI RPG Benchmark, which scores every released platform we have played on the same seven axes. Every rated platform is played first-hand, commercial relationships are disclosed, and scores are never sold.

Arcanum also builds research and tools: the benchmark is published as an open dataset with a permanent DOI, and our free tools help players run better campaigns without sending anything anywhere. Browse the complete AI RPG directory to see every game and platform in one place.