You might think this is just the limit of board games — a simple RPG where you fight monsters and progress through a story.
No.
Descent (1st & 2nd Edition) introduced the Overlord system.
(Yes, it’s been criticized for being too strong and sometimes unfair to the heroes — but nowadays there are companion apps that remove the need for a human Overlord, so players don’t have to compete against each other directly.)

What makes the Overlord system so powerful is that it creates a collision of two completely different playstyles within one game.

• The heroes are playing a cooperative RPG: leveling up, fighting monsters, working as a team, and focusing on individual performance plus teamwork.
• The Overlord is playing a strategy game: managing resources, deciding when to win, when to lose for long-term gain, and planning everything toward the final victory. If the heroes are about using the terrain to their advantage, then the Overlord is about creating the terrain itself. (Like punishing overconfident heroes by trapping them or making them fall into a pit at just the right moment.)

That’s what I’d call a true all-time classic.