The 20 best games of 2024

When games are good, they offer a portal away from your problems and the chance to be someone else for a bit. You’re a sword-swishing samurai, a mythical monkey warrior, a nuclear survivor journeying through the fallout zone, a magical street fighter, a master card-player, an intergalactic con artist looking for your next mark. You could, for the right price, be literally anyone.

That’s quite the choice to make, when you think about it. Luckily we’ve spent the entire year button-smashing and rage-quitting our way through every platformer and first-person shooter we could get our controller-moulded hands on – to bring you this, the definitive list of 2024’s best video games. Choose wisely… or maybe just play them all?

Alex Flood, Managing Editor (Entertainment and Partnerships)

Words by: Echo Apsey, Mark Beaumont, Scott McCrae, Jordan Oloman, Ali Shutler, Surej Singh, Sarah Thwaites and Charlie Wacholz

20. ‘Thank Goodness You’re Here!’

Platform: PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch

Hilarious and vulgar in equal measure, Thank Goodness You’re Here! is a slap-happy comedy adventure game chock-full of incisive British satire. Set in the pit town of Barnsworth, players waltz into the pint-sized boots of a travelling salesman whose ability to deliver a firm smack is, surprisingly, the salve to many of the city’s quotidian problems. As you roam back and forth through the cartoon township, you’ll assist shopkeepers, bobbies and local reprobates as the strange circumstances surrounding the salesman’s arrival escalate in uncanny fashion.

Alongside the progression granting slap-tivities, you can also throw hands at the enticing bum of a burger van chef or knock a snack out of a small boy’s hands. It’s a system that gives you the freedom to finally listen to that evil voice in your head and allows this crude but immensely creative indie game to shine.

Best bit: A remarkable pool of voice actors breathe bizarre charm into the citizens of Barnslow, including a cheeky gardener played with expertise by national treasure Matt Berry.

For fans of: Untitled Goose Game, Octodad. ST

19. ‘Tekken 8’

Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Tekken 8 gives us more Tekken and that’s a great thing. After Tekken 7 focused mostly on defensive play (exacerbated by the likes of Akuma and Geese Howard’s projectile game), Tekken 8 has gone the opposite way. It’s probably the most aggressive entry in the series so far. The Heat system may be a little rough around the edges but it’s made a massive mark on the fighting.

And of course, Tekken’s bonkers lore results in another great story mode for the series. This time you follow Jin Kazama, who still has the Devil Gene inside of him. It’s not going to win any awards for writing but if you let yourself get enveloped by the daftness of it all, you’re in for a great time. Its shine may have dulled slightly due to the business practices post-launch, but there’s no denying the moreish fighting at the core of Tekken 8 is absolutely fantastic.

Best bit: The soundtrack to Jin and Kazuya’s final battle.

For fans of: Street Fighter, Guilty Gear. SM

18. ‘Dragon’s Dogma 2’

Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a high fantasy RPG starring a prophesied hero destined to slay a dragon – but don’t let the familiar premise fool you into thinking this is an ordinary action game. Emergent gameplay pockmarks its enormous open world, where you’ll quarrel with hulking beasts, survive ambushes and eavesdrop on political conspiracies while embodying a range of role-playing classes including deadly archers and mystic spearhands.

Players are joined in this adventure by their pawns. These customisable companions help you topple the fauna of this wartorn land, react to their surroundings and lure you towards quests with tantalising advice. The physicality of Dragon Dogma 2’s combat is the most exciting part though. You’ll need to clamber up the back of a cyclops to plunge a dagger into its eye – and wrangling griffins is best done as quickly as possible, before they take to the skies and drop you towards your certain doom.

Best bit: Building a pawn to look like Baron Harkonnen from Dune and hearing about their asynchronous adventures with other players when you next log in.

For fans of: Elden Ring, Shadow Of The Colossus. JO

17. ‘Persona 3 Reload’

Platform: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC

When NME first heard about this remake of Katsura Hashino’s 2006 role-playing game, we scoffed. You can’t improve on a classic, so why bother? But after more hours than we’d care to share spent running around Tatsumi Port Island, hanging out with the quirky schoolkids of Gekkoukan High and battling shadowy monsters in a giant tower, there’s just no denying it: Persona 3 Reload is better.

As with the original, you play a teenager who’s recently moved to the area. Before too long, you’ll discover the ability to summon a Persona – the physical manifestation of your inner spirit – and get asked to join the Specialised Extracurricular Execution Squad (S.E.E.S. for short), which is made up of supernatural oddballs like yourself. Then it’s off to the mystical world of Tartarus via some magical stairs (don’t ask) to pulverise a lot of weird-looking beasties and uncover the mystery of The Dark Hour. If you’re successful, you’ll get to return to the normal world for a day – play with your mates, cause trouble in the corridors – before it’s back to Tartarus at night. Warning: Persona 3 Reload is almost impossible to put down.

Best bit: Any and all of the different extracurricular activities you can get involved in: from slurping down noodles at the ramen bar to training with the high school track team after class.

For fans of: Cassette Beasts, Final Fantasy 10. AF

16. ‘Stalker 2: Heart Of Chornobyl’

Platform: Xbox Series X/S, PC

An anti-power fantasy video game where you pilfer the remains of a second Chornobyl disaster, Stalker 2 is an open-world shooter that demands more from its players than most. But this is precisely why it’s worth your attention. Unforgiving combat and limited fast-travel opportunities force you to meaningfully engage with the stunning, meticulously detailed environment. Every rundown house is an opportunity but also an enormous risk, as you’re forced to stock up on food, bandages and anti-radiation drugs to scrape past clever bandit squads and clumsy mutants.

Ancillary adventures arise in the form of anomaly fields, nature-defying spouts of the elements that leave behind alien artefacts that can modify your humanity — if you can outwit the hazards and claim them. The immersive qualities are immense and only grow as you mantle over Stalker 2’s learning hurdles and wade deeper into the experience, towards the thought-provoking secrets that lie at the heart of The Zone.

Best bit: Testing the power of an anomaly by throwing bolts, then sprinting between scrapped cars to escape the maw of a gravity vortex as lightning ripples the ground around you.

For fans of: Fallout: New Vegas, Hunt: Showdown. JO

15. ‘Prince Of Persia: The Lost Crown’

Platform: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC

This genre-defining banger delivers effortlessly swaggering style, rewarding combat and distinct cultural nods. Its brilliant twists on the Metroidvania genre that are sure to leave their mark in the same way Hollow Knight, Symphony Of The Night or Super Metroid have. The latest chapter in Prince Of Persia’s storied legacy is more than just one of the best games to come out this year; it’s all but guaranteed to gracefully age into stone-cold-classic-dom.

Flashy flourishes add oomph to its white-knuckle, anime-inspired boss fights that weave Persian mythology into a compelling story. And by vaulting over the average ten hour Metroidvania runtime, The Lost Crown takes every opportunity it has to flex its mechanical chops with plenty of optional and mandatory platforming, combat, and puzzle-driven challenges that are sure to keep even the most seasoned veteran busy for hours on end.

Best bit: The boss fights are just the right balance of infuriating challenge and giddy enjoyment.

For fans of: Ori And The Will Of The Wisps, Metroid Dread. CW

14. ‘Life Eater’

Platform: PC

Who knew stalking, abducting and murdering people could be so much fun? That’s your main occupation in Life Eater, a grisly horror simulator where every detail – from the colour of a potential victim’s hair to the amount of time they spend sleeping – matters. What twisted goal is it all in aid of? Saving the world, of course.

Let us explain. In Life Eater, you play as a modern day druid (stay with it) – and as part of an annual ritual designed to stop a mysterious god from ending the universe, it’s your job to abduct randomers and sacrifice them to the almighty. We know, that sounds horrible. But devote a few hours to scribbling down a stranger’s commute pattern, then bugging their bathroom before ritually removing their pancreas and you might find you’ve acquired a taste for the psychopathic. Hopefully you won’t though…

Best bit: The unsettling, industrial soundtrack from composer David Mason, who also scored Lovecraftian fishing game Dredge.

For fans of: Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator, Sunshine Shuffle. AF

13. ‘Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2’

Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Outside of its domination of the strategy genre, Warhammer games are never really slam dunks in terms of quality. Many are buggy or too ambitious for their own budget, but Space Marine 2 is the Warhammer game fans have been dreaming of. It’s a blockbuster action-packed gorefest that lets you feel like a bullet train as you slice, dice and gun down hordes of enemies across the game’s campaign, multiplayer, and co-op.

Packed with content, it offers a deep third-person shooter experience with some of the most visceral and satisfying combat of 2024. Its setpieces are spectacular and its visuals are incredible, offering impressive blood-soaked landscapes that drip with realism. Even if you aren’t a Warhammer fan, Space Marine 2’s gameplay is so good that you soon will be.

Best bit: The entire final campaign mission.

For fans of: DOOM, Gears Of War. EA

12. ‘Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’

Platform: PS5

With two out of the three parts of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy now out in the world, it’s pretty clear that this is one of the most ambitious, impressive reworkings in video game history.

2020’s Remake took one of the game’s most iconic locations and fleshed it out beyond the wildest dreams of longterm fans. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth multiplies that depth tenfold. It continues to tell the beloved story while deepening every single character and narrative moment with new dialogue and extra lore. It’s a wonderfully faithful adaptation but still feels fresh and exciting. There’s more than nostalgia at play here. Add onto that a huge open world boiling over with quests, minigames and side activities and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is a globe-trotting spectacle you really shouldn’t miss.

Best bit: Visiting The Golden Saucer for the first time.

For fans of: Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Dragon Quest XI: Echoes Of An Elusive Age. EA

11. ‘Balatro’

Platform: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC

On paper, Balatro shouldn’t work as well as it does. But this poker-themed card game taps into the most lizard-brained, carnal aspects of what makes a video game fun. Everything on-screen dances with a hypnotic wiggle as satisfying clicks, pings and baselines scratch an itch buried deep within your brain as the numbers from your latest hand rocket higher and higher.

It’s impossible to resist gleefully cranking the lever on Balatro’s big, shiny slot machine over and over again, assuring yourself ‘I’ll get it next time’. Appropriately dubbed as, “a sequel to poker” by its legions of fans, Balatro’s shocking, ever-evolving depth ensures discovery with each round. The game constantly ups the ante, handing you new, satisfying tools to hack away at every barrier preventing you from beating the house – who eventually always win.

Best bit: Taking your chances with the Wheel Of Fortune tarot card – it almost never lands the way you want it to but maybe one day…

For fans of: Slay The Spire, Dicey Dungeons. CW

10. ‘The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom’

Platform: Nintendo Switch

The Switch has seen some brilliant Zelda games. Breath Of The Wild threw open the doors to the epic open-world wilderness of Hyrule while Tears Of The Kingdom’s smart creation system let you build all sorts of gadgets from whatever odds and ends you had lying around. Echoes Of Wisdom may be a return to the vintage top-down Zelda experience but there’s still plenty of innovation to be found.

For the first time in the franchises’ long history, you take control of Princess Zelda. She has to rescue Link and the rest of her kingdom from a shadowy alternative reality. Sure, she might not be great with a sword but her ability to “Echo” objects and monsters gives you limitless options to solve puzzles, overcome obstacles and battle beasties.

The cartoonish visuals look gorgeous and there’s a real sense of nightmarish menace to ‘The Still World’ as petrified Hyrulians slowly dissolve into nothingness. With an urgent, zippy story and the freedom to tackle it your own way, Echoes Of Wisdom is the perfect blend of classic and modern Zelda.

Best bit: Summoning a bed to have a health-replenishing nap. We’ve never been so jealous of a video game character.

For fans of: The Legend Of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, Tunic. AS

9. ‘Metaphor: ReFantazio’

Platform: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Thanks to the huge success of Persona 5, developers Atlus have earned a reputation for turn-based brilliance. Rather than repeat themselves though, the team set about creating something new and telling a different kind of story. It might not be what we’ve come to expect from them, but Metaphor: ReFantazio is Atlus’ magnum opus.

Telling a grand political story of power across a kingdom, its ideas are poignant and its themes more relevant than ever in today’s world of conflict and opposition. Gorgeous art, stunning animations, an earth-shatteringly good soundtrack and some smart tweaks to traditional turn-based combat, Metaphor: ReFantazio is a work of art. It’s a huge role-playing game that’ll take you hours and hours to finish but every moment offers something to treasure.

Best bit: Travelling through the land on your Gauntlet Runner.

For fans of: Persona 5 Royal, Fire Emblem: Three Houses. EA

8. ‘Pokémon TCG Pocket’

Platform: Mobile

It’s 2024 and people are getting obsessed with Pokémon cards all over again. While the trading card game has maintained a loyal following since the original ‘90s boom, trying to collect ‘em all can be an expensive hobby. Enter Pokémon TCG Pocket. A free-to-play mobile title designed to make the trading card game more accessible, Pocket readily hands out digital booster packs and simplifies the complicated battling rules. It’s refreshingly straightforward.

Sure, online forums are full of tactics to help win head-to-head card battles and if that’s not your vibe, you can spend your time arranging your nostalgia-inducing collection to flex in the online galleries instead. The whole thing requires very little commitment but there are plenty of rewards for regular visitors too. It’s perhaps why Pocket is so addictive. With new cards on the horizon and trading just around the corner, this obsession isn’t going away anytime soon

Best bit: Pulling that gorgeous, immersive Charizard card you’ve been hunting for weeks.

For fans of: Marvel Snap, Pokémon Red & Blue. AS

7. ‘Silent Hill 2 Remake’

Platform: PS5, PC

How do you make a survival horror masterpiece even better? You give it the Resident Evil 4 Remake treatment, of course. Thanks to the technological advances that’ve been developed since the release of the game changing 2001 original, Silent Hill 2 Remake’s enhanced unnerving atmosphere, improved sound design, redesigned boss encounters, brand new puzzles and modernised combat mechanisms have brought what was already a near-perfect game to even greater (and more terrifying) heights.

Though drastically improved in nearly every aspect and sporting a longer campaign, Silent Hill 2 Remake remains remarkably faithful to the original across its storybeats and should evoke nightmare-fueled nostalgia for anyone who played the PS2 classic. An unsettling facelift in every way, Silent Hill 2 Remake should now deservedly be considered the definitive version of the greatest survival horror game of all time.

Best bit: The Abstract Daddy encounter – an expanded boss battle that turns what was once a dull obstacle into a thrilling game of hide and seek.

For fans of: Resident Evil 4 Remake, Alan Wake 2. SS

6. ‘Helldivers 2’

Platform: PS5, PC

Few games call for impassioned battle cries like Helldivers 2. As a soldier of Super Earth, you defend democracy by blasting venomous space bugs and Terminator-like automatons with as much firepower as you can muster. There are Projectile weapons aplenty as well as special Stratagems that let you rain hellfire or call for backup by punching in a D-Pad cheat code, usually in frantic desperation before you are pounded into the dirt. With the help of up to three additional soldiers online, you’ll assist in Federation-friendly tasks like evacuations and info gathering. Mini-missions inevitably go sideways with hilarious complications that turn simple grab-and-go gigs into harrowing war stories.

Best bit: As you and your fellow Helldivers mobilise to free a planet, you’ll see the Liberation metre tick up in tandem with other squads from around the globe, creating a sense of pride and community.

For fans of: Left 4 Dead 2, Earth Defense Force 5. ST

5. ‘Astro Bot’

Platform: PS5

Sony birthed its own mascot with Astro Bot back when the PS3 launched with The Playroom. Since then, the chirpy little android has gone on to star in three critically acclaimed experiences that not only showcase the best of what PlayStation’s hardware can do, but also provided some of most joyous and fun platforming experiences on the consoles. See, learning can be fun.

Astro Bot is no different as the charming robot heads out on his biggest adventure yet. The game is packed with interesting level design and fantastic gameplay mechanics that are consistently throwing new twists at you. Every world is a fresh challenge. An energetic and vibrant soundtrack, as well as dozens of Easter Eggs from across Playstation’s thirty-year legacy, only accentuate Astro Bot’s best parts even more. It is a wonderfully refreshing celebration of all things PlayStation.

Best bit: Taking on the endgame challenge once you have found all the bots.

For fans of: Super Mario Odyssey, Ratchet & Clank. EA

4. ‘Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth’

Platform: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC

RGG Studio had the unenviable task of simultaneously wrapping up almost 20 years of storytelling and following up arguably the greatest game in the Yakuza series with this title. Somehow Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth nails it in every way. It mixes best-in-class storytelling and humour (boosted by an incredible cast of characters) with a highly refined RPG battle system that makes turn-based combat sing.

Living up to the name, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth features an embarrassment of riches. There’s the lengthy main story that explodes into an emotional finale alongside countless substories and minigames. Did we mention the entire Animal Crossing-inspired game that’s also on offer for you to dig your teeth into? Infinite Wealth marks a fitting goodbye to one of the best protagonists ever in Kazuma Kiryu while newcomer Ichiban Kasuga quickly makes himself at home.

Best bit: Leading a group of middle-aged men into battle against a shark.

For fans of: Persona, Metal Gear Solid. SM

3. ‘Star Wars Outlaws’

Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Sweep-cut! From the desert wastes of Tatooine to the clanking corridors of Imperial Star Destroyers – via beautifully realised cities like the icy Kijimi and the sand-blasted Mos Eisley – Star Wars Outlaws was a sci-fi nostalgia trip so wonderfully immersive you could easily forgive the odd buggy mission or a janky speeder bike that felt like riding around alien jungles an off-kilter ironing board.

Gameplay is a mash-up of numerous other titles – Uncharted’s parkour, Red Dead Redemption’s mass shoot-outs, Assassin’s Creed’s infiltration missions – but it’s thoroughly enjoyable remix with an atmospheric depth all its own. Here, becoming a demon at the Sabbac card tables is just as imperative as honing blaster skills, eavesdropping at cantina counters paid side-quest and treasure-hunting dividends. You’ll come away amazed at how fondly you could feel towards your team of hulking robot assassins and squeaking space chipmunks. And then there are the cameos – various story points land you right in the middle of the early Star Wars narrative, facing down some pretty iconic figures. Reckon you can pull one over on Jabba The Hut? Try it, punk.

Best bit: The epic Rancor fight in Jabba’s palace basement.

For fans of: Assassin’s Creed, Uncharted. MB

2. ‘Black Myth: Wukong’

Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Gamers had plenty of time to build up sky-high expectations in the four years since Black Myth: Wukong was first announced. Thankfully Game Science’s first AAA title delivered on all fronts, with developers producing one of the most ambitious action games in a long time.

Here, you play as the Destined One – a monkey warrior seeking to resurrect Sun Wukong by gathering and uniting six relics. A lengthy boss-rush, Wukong is surprisingly forgiving during major battles, offering a challenging but not punishing onslaught of fights that’ll keep you coming back for more. However, this doesn’t mean it’s easy; its difficulty is only rivalled by Elden Ring and Sekiro. Boss fights are only manageable if you’re patient enough and able to adapt your playstyle for the most satisfying outcome. Besides these smooth and rewarding boss fights, Wukong is visually stunning, with crisp, emotionally stirring hand-drawn vignettes wrapping up each chapter. The whole thing looks and feels astounding.

Best bit: Landing the killing blow on Erlang The Sacred Divinity, who’s sure to give Malenia and Radhan a run for their money.

For fans of: Elden Ring, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. SS

1. ‘Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6’

Platform: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC

There have been 24 Call Of Duty games since 2003. The fast-paced, first-person shooter series is one of the most popular in the world but in recent years, the franchise has struggled to feel truly exciting. There have been a number of game-changing tweaks introduced in the name of innovation but really, they’ve just got in the way of the bloody thrills.

Black Ops 6 is a return to form, with developers focusing on enjoyment at every corner. The action-packed single-player campaign echoes the best moments of Bond and Mission: Impossible, Zombies is a giddy mix of violence, horror and arcade glee while multiplayer is frustratingly brilliant. The slick gameplay and condensed maps mean it’s easy to feel like a badass before you inevitably get humbled by a stray grenade. Moments later, you’re heading out on another daring assault with the new omnimovement system making you feel every bit the action hero. It’s just heaps of fun – what more could you want?

Best bit: Nailing a perfect headshot while diving through the air – cheers omnimovement.

For fans of: Halo Infinite, DOOM. AS

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