Well, I'd want to see something where the Eeeevil folks are still recognizably people. They worry about having eldercare when they are old, complain about how the corpse pits ruin their appetites at lunchtime, steal food from starving children...to feed their own starving children.

Or alternately, they aren't evil, just different in such a confusing way that it takes a really long time and a lot of work to even begin to establish any sort of trusting amicable relationship. Like, one group has no property law, or they only recognize select subgroups of the population as having rights, or they fundamentally misunderstand the lived experience of the other group(s) in the setting.

At least with the Tolkienesque orcs, he didn't think they were irredeemable, but couldn't seem to figure out how to make them be good again.

The Urgals from the Inheritance Cycle were well-done I think - we mostly see them from across the battlelines, and the main viewpoint character hates them from seeing the leaving-behind of that violence. He doesn't chill out with the Fantastic Racism until he essentially does a mind-meld with some of them, and even then, he has no way to explain his change of heart to his similarly-prejudiced friends.

>>The I Became a Succubus, and the Only Way to Level is to... What?! series by Jammin' Rabbit.<<

There are various examples of Vegan Vampires of all sorts.

For the video-game specific example, I would also wonder if there is a way to gain valuable skills outside of the levelling up protocol. For example, can you max some stats independently of level, use high-level gear, or join a team and barter stockpiled goods, knowledge, etc?