I started with http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fantasy_Trip in high school way back in the 1980s, which was a tabletop sort of game similar to Dungeons and Dragons. For those unfamiliar, each player takes turns (as well as NPCs) rolling dice, consulting books, doing math. It's very slow. From those days, I have always wanted to see all of this happening in real-time. It would take until 2008 when I discovered Oblivion to find what I was looking for, since I have never had a gaming PC.
Anyways, here is my "list" of games I've been involved with ... these sorts of games being in the same vein as those tabletop RPGs we used to play.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adventure_%28Atari_2600%29 - Atari 2600. Early to mid 80s. We used to play this silly game
over and over again as kids.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Zelda - original Nintento. Late '80s. We all know about Zelda ... I hope.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faxanadu - original Nintendo: late '80s, early '90s. Basically a side-scrolling 2D game.
From the early 90s until the New Millenium, this would be my gaming Dark Ages.

I wasn't gaming at all.
Tomb Raider - Playstation 1. early 2000. Although TR is not an RPG by any sense of the meaning, the original Tomb Raider is what captured my attention, and got me gaming again. I bought Tomb Raider
and a PS1, both were impulse buys made after I spent way too many hours playing my friend's PS1 when he was off to work at the time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legend_of_Dragoon - PS1 2002-ish. This is your typical JRPG type of game, where PCs and NPCs take turns. I remember enjoying this one a lot at the time, but probably would find it tedious nowadays (too used to OB and Skyrim)
Various Final Fantasy games - throughout the 2000s. I don't remember exactly which ones I have at home. Doesn't really matter, though. FF games contain a LOT of content. I've never been able to finish (if that's an appropriate word) one of these.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drakengard - PS2, mid 2000s. I remember being so disappointed with Drakengard that I took it back to GameStop. Lol.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bard%27s_Tale_%282004_video_game%29 - PS2, mid 2000s. I rented this one weekend when I was mega-depressed. I remember BT was so funny, it actually cheered me out of my depression.

But I never bought this one. ...still looking for that ultimate RPG...the one I wanted to find since the 1980s.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champions_of_Norrath:_Return_to_Arms - PS2. mid 2000s. This is a top-view Action RPG, I like this one. Every time you play it, the game changes the landscape a bit; it's pretty neat in this respect.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baldur%27s_Gate:_Dark_Alliance - PS2. mid 2000s. Similar to CoN above, except the landscape stays static. I got an area of BG: DA in which I kept dying over and over, and my previous gamesave would have put me way back in the beginning. At this moment I dropped BG and never picked it up again, even though I enjoyed it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons_Tactics - PSP 2007-ish. This is a typical turn-based RPG, and one of the only videogames I've ever finished to the very end.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - PS3 2008-current. I read a review for TES: IV at www.gamerevolution.com , or .... I started to. After reading maybe half this review, I rushed to the closest mall to buy this game AND a PS3 on-the-spot. Finally found the game I had been looking for (literally) most of my life. After starting TES: IV, I've found that I play other games less and less.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - PS3 & Xbox 360, 11/11/11-current. TES 4 and 5 have poisoned my desire to explore other videogames. I am curious about Dark Souls, Fable, and several other RPGs or Action RPGs; problem is I don't have
time for any of these others.

Long post...but it was worth it to me.