The PlayStation 5 is starting to get a formidable collection of games, buoyed by several solid first-party exclusives and third-party developers starting to get the hang of how to develop for the console. To help you decide what to get for your giant white box of happiness, we’ve whittled down some of the best PS5 games released on the console to date.
- READ MORE: No game from 2021 was more full of joy than Ratchet & Crank: Rift Apart
So, we hear you ask, what are those games? What do you need to download on PlayStation 5? Whether you’re after titles that have attracted unprecedented critical acclaim, or if you’re eager to try something that’s been hailed as a standout commercial success, we’ve got you covered with our curated list of the best PS5 games on the market.
You’ll notice that as you read on below we have stuck to games that are 100% pure PS5 – there are no PS4 games, no patched PS4-to-PS5 crossovers, no half-baked ports, and nothing for the PSVR2, either. They’re all great – and have their place on other lists like our best FPS games, best PSVR2 games or even best PS4 games – but if you’ve got a PS5 and you want to play with some of the best games out there, go ahead, crack on.
Best PS5 games
Here’s our list of the very best PS5 games you can play in 2022. We’ll be updating this page as new releases launch, and as we spend more time with the console’s ever-growing catalogue.
- Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart
- Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Elden Ring
- Sifu
- Returnal
- Astro’s Playroom
- Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla
- FIFA 22
- It Takes Two
- Hitman 3
- Dead Space Remake
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart
Ratchet & Clank: A Rift Apart. Credit: Insomniac Games
The latest instalment in the saga of DIY-loving duo Ratchet & Clank, Rift Apart is a Saturday morning TV fever dream come to glorious 4K, ray-traced life. Bursting with references to older games in the storied franchise while serving as a useful entry point for newcomers, it’s an absolute treat. Showcasing the unique powers of the PS5’s custom SSD (making loading new levels and worlds eye-poppingly fast), hopping through portals becomes a narrative and gameplay mechanic, mixing up the classic formula just enough to keep things fresh, while never fixing what isn’t broken. Top tip: play in Performance RT mode for silky smooth 60fps gunplay as well as the glorious new lighting effects. Clank has never looked so shiny.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Credit: Insomniac
Yes, we’re kicking off this list with an Insomniac one-two. Blarg knows how the studio managed it, but only seven months before shipping Ratchet, Insomniac christened the PS5 era with the launch release of Spider-Man Miles Morales. Sure, it’s not a full sequel to Marvel’s Spider-Man, but it’s still a sizable spin-off. Think Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, rather than The Last of Us: Left Behind. Cashing in on the narrative threads established in the first game, Miles is now a budding superhero in his own right. It’s the details that really make this entry sing: a snowy reskin of the NYC map; side characters like Rio Morales stepping up into pivotal roles, making us feel truly invested in this developing world. Even the slightly unpolished, off-balance, helter-skelter nature of Miles’ still burgeoning swinging. It’s a brilliant continuation, and expansion, of the series. Roll on the full sequel.
Elden Ring
Elden Ring. Credit: FromSoftware
Let’s be honest: with Elden Ring‘s launch establishing it as FromSoftware’s fastest-selling Souls game to date, there’s a decent chance that you’ve already jumped on the Miyazaki wagon and repeatedly died. On the chance that you’ve not tried it out just yet, don’t let the studio’s notoriety for tough games put you off – we gave Elden Ring a glowing five star review, and noticed that there’s a lot more ways for players to approach difficult moments than in prior FromSoftware games. Paired with a gorgeous, intricate open world and all of the jaw-dropping boss fights we’ve come to expect, Elden Ring is a must-play for anyone who has the opportunity to explore the Lands Between on PS5.
Sifu
Sifu. Credit: Sloclap
Sifu isn’t just a neon-lit brawler so bone-crunchingly violent it makes the hammer-in-the-hallway scene of Oldboy look like a light bit of DIY. It’s possibly the smartest premise we’ve encountered in the genre for some time. Along with superb combat mechanics that never seem to miss a beat – helping you to launch a one-man slug fest while hunting down some heavy hitters who murdered your dad when you were a child – the real genius here lies in how you die. You see, each time you meet your maker in Sifu, you come back to life immediately, but wake up older. Take a pummelling as a 20 year old and you will wake up aged 21, with your Death Counter set to 1. Struggle through the levels and soon enough you’ll be pushing 30, or worse, 75, which is when your lives really do run out. The effects of Father Time aren’t kind here: certain bonuses and skills have an age cap, which in turn forces you to become a better player and hopefully avoid the infamy of going toe-to-toe with the biggest bosses in the body of a wrinkly, creaking OAP. We’ve marked it as an early game of the year contender (read the five-star review right here) and we’ve a sneaky suspicion you’ll be growing old with it for a long time yourself.
Returnal
Returnal. Credit: Housemarque
Another recent release, Returnal has pedigree practically dripping from its gooey alien pores. From Housemarque, the studio that gave us arcade gems such as Super Stardust HD, Resogun (itself a PS4 launch title) and Dead Nation, to its heart-on-sleeve references (Alien, PT, Annihilation), via the rousing success of the roguelike genre – this feels both of-its-time and retro in the same breath. Selene, a scientist-astronaut-type, has to fight her way out of both a hostile alien locale and, seemingly, her own brain-induced nightmares. It’s intense, always varied, tough-as-nails – and oh so fun. Another showcase of lightning-fast loading and buttery 60fps visuals, this is one of the best PS5 games if you’re after a technical showcase of what the hardware can do.
Astro’s Playroom
Astro’s Playroom. Credit: ASOBI Team
It might seem slightly anti-climactic to include a free bundled game on this list alongside its £70 RRP peers – but write Astro off at your peril. Quite comfortably the best tech demo free game since Wii Sports (and controversially, I’d say it’s even better), AstroBot will lead you down memory lane (almost literally) through the history of PlayStation. I’m honestly not ashamed to say that I found myself tearing up at several points as Team ASOBI seemingly left no foundational stone of my childhood unturned. Eagle-eyed gamers will find references to almost every major (and, in some cases, niche) game ever released on a PlayStation platform. Combine that with excellent platforming mechanics, lush stylised graphics, and an addictive demo of what the new DualSense controller can do – you’ll be hooked.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Credit: Ubisoft
Look: any pretence of the Assassin’s Creed series meaning anything other than being a past-set killing simulator disappeared around the time that Assassin’s Creed III bottled its modern day ending. So our advice? Just stop worrying about what it all means – kick back with a tankard of ale, grab your shield and set sail for Viking conquest. Because Ubisoft’s open-world, seafaring formula, premiered in AC III, developed in Black Flag and now perfected in Valhalla, is as fun and as liberating as ever. It’s also a useful showcase of how pretty the best PS5 games can look, which is always useful when your bitter friends come round and want to get their mitts on the DualSense just to be sure it’s real. Don’t expect to finish it this year. Valhalla is long.
FIFA 22
Credit: EA
The soundtrack. The official licenses (we’ll miss you, Juventus). The stadia. The kits. Since the dawn of console-dom, FIFA has always had the edge on its bitter rival Pro Evo, although FIFA has truly been in a league of its own after the jump to the last-gen consoles, boasting far superior game mechanics. Now showing what it can do on the PS5 courtesy of Hypermotion Technology (which basically boils down to the most additional animations EA Sports has ever given the series), FIFA 22 cements its status as the finest football game on the planet with ease. The GOAT. Read our review of it here.
It Takes Two
It Takes Two. Credit: Hazelight Studios
It seems like only a few years ago that couch co-op seemed to be dead forever, lost to the sands of time like a remote between the cushions. Enter Josef Fares, eccentric maverick, head of Hazelight Studios, and leader of the charge to bring back local multiplayer. Following on from the stellar work of A Way Out, It Takes Two is a kitchen sink drama channeled through a magic fairytale, as a warring couple find themselves transposed into the body of their child’s dolls. No, it doesn’t get any less weird from there. Best you find out the rest of the story yourself. Bring a friend – or better still, a significant other, to do some co-op in one of the best PS5 games for local multiplayer.
Hitman 3
Hitman 3. Credit: IO Interactive
Otherwise known as Professional Assassin Simulator 2021, Hitman 3 is an almost perfect feast for Generation Twitch. Open levels that encourage improvisation, planning, and more planning mean that no two players will approach a hit the same – and no one player will experience it the same way twice. IO Interactive has somehow flown slightly under the radar despite consistently churning out excellent Hitman games. The strength of their work has got them a deal to make a 007 game. Don’t sleep on their most polished and vibrant work yet.
Dead Space Remake
Dead Space Remake. CREDIT: EA Motive
Okay, we said no remakes but Dead Space Remake gets a pass because it’s a total top-to-bottom remake. The story is largely the same, the path you’ll take is largely the same, but damn if the game isn’t seriously elevated by some extra-shiny graphics and a few extra fun additions.
Dead Space Remake isn’t a particularly scary game – the scares come from intensity, mostly due to the relentless body horrors that are charging you from every vent and corridor while you’re trapped inside a spaceship in a decaying orbit. The best response is to, literally, cut your problems down into bite-sized chunks, chopping off limbs and impaling the creatures with their own fearsome claws.
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