16 Must-Play PS5 Games of 2025

2025 was a breakout year for the PS5. It brought a fantastic collection of games – including highly anticipated sequels, creative indie titles, and impressive showcases of what the console can do. Whether you enjoyed scary horror games, immersive RPGs, big-budget action, or unexpected remakes, 2025 had something for everyone, and plenty of reasons to stay up late playing.

With that, the nominees for the best PS5 games of 2025 are:

Lost Soul Aside

Originally a small tech experiment, Lost Soul Aside has evolved into a fully-fledged action RPG with fast-paced, stylish combat reminiscent of Revengeance. While it shares visual similarities with Final Fantasy due to its crystal-based aesthetic and character designs, Lost Soul Aside distinguishes itself through its intricate combos and diverse boss battles. As a first game from an independent studio, it’s still finding its footing (particularly in its storytelling), but its core gameplay shows a lot of promise.

The Midnight Walk

If you’re looking for a brief but charming adventure game with a unique claymation style, I highly recommend The Midnight Walk. What really stood out to me was how immersive the game felt, thanks to its creative environments, Tim Burton-inspired characters, and beautiful music. It creates a strong sense of place that stays with you even after you finish playing. Horror fans will also find plenty to enjoy, as the stealth sections are surprisingly scary despite the game’s gentle look.

Dying Light: The Beast

You can jump right into this game even if you haven’t played any previous Dying Light titles. It’s a completely separate story set in a dark, new wooded area overrun by zombies – a much scarier atmosphere that fans have wanted since the beginning. You’ll play as Kyle Crane, who has powerful new abilities to help you fight the infected creatures in Caster Woods, and the game features the most refined and satisfying skill progression system in the series so far.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

After a long wait, Hollow Knight: Silksong is finally here, and it lives up to the hype! We gave it a perfect score because of its exciting boss battles and enjoyable platforming. The game’s clever level design and progression system offer a lot of replay value and over 30 hours of challenging content for fans. New players will also love the beautiful art style and captivating music.

Where Winds Meet

Free-to-play games are constantly improving, and Where Winds Meet is a standout example. It impressively blends many different game types into one experience. Players can explore a beautiful, expansive open world with a full single-player story, challenging boss fights, fun minigames, and immersive gameplay. If you’ve dreamed of exploring 10th-century China with quests similar to The Witcher 3, and you’re okay with a free-to-play model and occasional bugs, Where Winds Meet truly delivers.

Blue Prince

Blue Prince is a strong contender for puzzle game of the year, and surprisingly, one of the best roguelikes too – it even won me over, and I usually don’t enjoy that genre! It’s incredibly easy to pick up and play. You explore a mansion made of randomly created rooms, but with a unique twist: you choose which rooms appear. Your goal is to unlock and find the hidden 46th room by carefully selecting rooms and solving puzzles. Don’t underestimate Blue Prince – its simple design is really captivating, even if you don’t usually play puzzle or roguelike games.

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

The first Death Stranding was a fantastic game, despite a few flaws. The Director’s Cut improved it with added content. Now, after over five years of development, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach arrived in June, and it’s a huge success. With incredibly refined gameplay building on the unique ‘strand’ mechanics, a captivating story, and stunning graphics, this sequel has everything needed to be a strong contender for game of the year.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

As a huge RPG fan, I’ve been completely hooked by Clair Obscur. It’s a turn-based game, but it feels so much more dynamic because you actually time your blocks and aim for specific enemy weaknesses – it’s not just selecting attacks! There’s a ton of different enemies, so you really need to think about your strategy. Honestly, the story and character progression are fantastic too. The characters are dealing with some really heavy stuff, like loss and what it means to be alive, and it’s genuinely moving. I was completely invested in figuring out the mystery The Paintress created and how to deal with the limited lifespans. If you’re into turn-based RPGs, Clair Obscur is a must-play – it’s easily one of the best I’ve seen this year.

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 builds on the immersive, realistic medieval gameplay of the original, delivering a polished, high-quality experience. Even late in the game, you’ll need to be careful – a simple bandit can still knock you out! The combat has been improved to be more enjoyable and easier to learn. The game world is stunning, with incredibly detailed and realistic towns like Troskowitz and Kuttenberg. However, it’s the story and side quests that really stand out. With beautiful visuals, excellent voice acting, and a commitment to historical accuracy, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a compelling narrative as well as a deep medieval simulation.

Silent Hill f

It’s hard to recreate the atmosphere of the classic Silent Hill games, as they rely on a lot of small details. But Silent Hill f manages to capture that feeling, even though it takes place in a new setting: a Japanese countryside town. The game perfectly evokes the signature Silent Hill mood, with creepy environments and fog that feels natural in a rural area. The combat is more action-packed than in previous games, pushing you to fight rather than hide. If the unsettling monster designs don’t get to you, the camera angles and music surely will. There’s a lot to enjoy in this new Silent Hill game, and with five different endings, you can play for as long as you like.

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater

The Metal Gear Solid Delta remake is a fantastic update to a classic. With perfectly recreated cutscenes, stunning 4K graphics, and helpful new features, it’s the best way to experience Metal Gear Solid 3 now. Beyond the beautiful visuals – like the way light reflects on Snake’s helmet – the added details really stand out. You’ll see Snake’s suit realistically wear and tear as you play, and new gameplay options like crouching and an over-the-shoulder camera make the game even more enjoyable. It truly offers everything you could want in a remake.

Ghost of Yotei

If you enjoyed Ghost of Tsushima, you’ll likely feel right at home with Ghost of Yotei. However, this game still manages to offer some surprises and is genuinely impressive. It’s particularly notable for its incredibly fast loading times and smooth performance, which are a result of being designed specifically for the PS5. The game features one of the most visually stunning open worlds we’ve seen, with distant landscapes that don’t sacrifice detail up close. The story is driven by a compelling group of villains, the Yotei Six, and their actions keep you engaged. Currently, Ghost of Yotei is the best way to show off what the PS5 can do, and it doesn’t seem like anything will replace it anytime soon.

Days Gone Remastered

While the remastered version of Days Gone doesn’t add a lot of new story content, the upgraded technology significantly improves the experience. It finally allows the game to reach its full potential, even if the story isn’t its strongest point. Combat, especially against the hordes of Freaker zombies, is now incredibly smooth, consistently staying above 60 FPS even during intense action. This creates a lively open-world zombie game with enjoyable combat that fans of The Last of Us might appreciate. If you don’t mind the main character frequently talking to himself, Days Gone Remastered offers hours of zombie-filled excitement.

Cronos: The New Dawn

As a horror fan, I’ve been seriously impressed with Bloober Team lately! They really seem to get what makes survival horror great, especially with projects like the Silent Hill 2 Remake and now Cronos. Cronos is genuinely unsettling – the atmosphere is so thick with tension that it actually messes with your aim! You play as The Traveler, and moving around feels deliberately slow, adding to the feeling of being trapped. Ammo is super scarce, so you’ll definitely die a lot, but trust me, it’s worth it. The game has a really unique Polish setting and the gameplay is just so tight and well-crafted.

Sword of the Sea

Sword of the Sea immediately draws you in with its vibrant visuals, captivating music, and incredibly smooth controls. It feels as natural and enjoyable to play as the developers’ previous game, The Pathless. Even with a few small performance hiccups on the PS5, Sword of the Sea excels at what the studio does best, and that’s definitely something to appreciate.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl (PS5)

After a long wait, Stalker 2 is now available on PS5, and it’s an excellent port. Players on PlayStation can explore the strange and dangerous exclusion zone with smooth performance and beautiful graphics. The PS5’s DualSense controller really enhances the experience, making searching for anomalies feel incredibly immersive with its detailed vibrations and trigger effects. Stalker 2 combines intense horror with engaging immersive sim gameplay, creating a memorable experience that’s further enhanced by features exclusive to the PS5.

And The Best PS5 Game of 2025 Goes to:

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach

It’s incredible how Kojima surpassed the originality of the first Death Stranding with the sequel. The game is packed with unforgettable moments, and the characters are much more developed, likely thanks to the impressive cast. Beyond the story and presentation, the core gameplay – delivering packages – has been significantly improved. Those breathtaking views and precarious journeys are still present, now enhanced by a dynamic day/night cycle and challenging weather conditions like earthquakes, dust storms, and heavy rain as you explore new areas in Mexico and Australia. Death Stranding 2 is a standout PS5 game, truly showcasing the best of PlayStation’s first-party titles. It’s our pick for the best PS5 game of 2025 and ranks among PlayStation’s all-time greats.

2025-12-08 20:44