Gaming

The Best Reviewed Games of 2024 (So Far)

ByNews Polite April 9, 2024

Review Score: 8 (“Great”)

These games leave us with something outstanding to remember them by, usually novel gameplay ideas for single-player or multiplayer, clever characters and writing, noteworthy graphics and sound, or some combination thereof. If we have major complaints, there are more than enough excellent qualities to cancel them out.

Botany Manor

From our review: Clever clues entwine with Botany Manor’s charming old English setting to make a lighthearted first-person puzzler worth tending to. Figuring out how to grow its fantastical plants kept me on my toes, and the blossoming flora painting onto the pages of my herbarium with bright colors gave me a comforting sense of achievement. I was more invested in deciphering its puzzles than I was reading the notes and letters that make up its fairly one-note story, but the variety of surreal seeds with unique traits in each new area gave an exciting cadence to the somewhat repetitive act of tracking down clues. Botany Manor is a laid-back game that doesn’t ask you to do too much, simply grow some strange plants and decompress – and sometimes that’s exactly what you need. – Saniya Ahmed

Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile

From our review: It’s tough to think of a mobile game that comes as close to giving the full-scale multiplayer experience as Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile does. There’s nothing here that reinvents Warzone, but that isn’t the point. Though the touch controls put you at a clear disadvantage to anybody using a Bluetooth controller and your phone may struggle to keep the frame rate and textures smooth if it isn’t the latest and greatest, Warzone Mobile excellently uses maps and gameplay elements to provide a fast and fun battle royale experience. If you’re already into Warzone, cross-progression makes it feel like an extension of the game you already like, with more opportunities to play it more often. It’s fair to say that the best thing about Warzone Mobile is that it makes it easier to play more Warzone. – Phil Hornshaw

Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor Early Access

From our review: While Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor’s Early Access status is clear in the limited number of modes and maps it currently contains, it doesn’t feel unpolished or annoying to play at all. Translating the adventurous, raucous, party game spirit of its shooter big brother to a single-player roguelite about as well as anyone could have, it’s an enjoyable addition to one of my favorite franchises. Whether it’s first-person or top-down, wielding a small arsenal of wonderful, punchy weapons as I sprint through critter-filled caverns on my murderous quest for loot and glory warms my stony heart. – Leana Hafer

Dragon’s Dogma 2

From our review: Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a strange and wonderful game that seems haunted by some of yesteryear’s bugaboos. It is a retelling and reimplementation of all of those wonderful ideas from the 2012 cult-classic, including an awesome dynamic world and some of the best combat in the genre that integrates a subtle but amazingly complex physics system. On the other hand, its finicky ally AI, clunky climbing, choppy frame rate, and camera with a habit of going haywire at the worst times are all “features” I wish hadn’t been brought back for another round. Even so, there’s an action-RPG here that’s richly rewarding and incomparable to its contemporaries if you can be patient with its quirks and open to embracing its hands-off open-world and quest designs. – Jarrett Green

Enshrouded Early Access

From our review: Enshrouded will likely be an instant hit for anyone who’s ever wanted to build a castle in a fantasy world full of danger, and it makes all that building fun and easy with an intuitive set of tools. But even if you don’t care much about crafting or building, Enshrouded’s RPG systems are already solid enough to carry you through its open world for a few dozen hours – even if its vague story isn’t all that powerful, its puzzles are forgettable, and its combat and movement systems could use some fine-tuning. Thankfully, there’s usually no pressure to do anything but try to unlock the next visually-breathtaking area, and that made for a smooth 62-hour journey. – Gabriel Moss

Expeditions: A Mudrunner Game

From our review: Expeditions: A MudRunner Game certainly isn’t a replacement for the supremely addictive SnowRunner, but its more untamed wilderness maps and huge truckload of exploration-focused missions do see it function as a very worthwhile complementary experience – despite some aggravating mission gating and a bit of an unfriendly map screen. Its unique brand of slow-paced bushwhacking won’t ever be for everybody, but successfully taking a truck on a trek through terrain that the toughest trailblazers would fear to tread is still an oddly satisfying challenge that proves the journey is always more important than the destination. – Luke Reilly

Granblue Fantasy: Relink

From our review: Granblue Fantasy: Relink bucks the RPG genre’s usual trend of long and slow-paced stories, but the relative brevity of its campaign doesn’t compromise on the quality of its storytelling. Its mobile game origins don’t always translate over well, feeling a little thin in some aspects, but questing with friends in multiplayer is very exciting – even if the lack of crossplay is disappointing. However, Relink’s fun action combat and interesting cast of characters has kept me happily playing long after I beat the final boss. – George Yang

Last Epoch

From our review: Last Epoch is an impressive, time-bending action RPG that combines rich customization with modern action. In the mechanical sense, it serves as an important stepping stone between Diablo and Path of Exile – but even without making direct comparisons, it competently stands on its own merits thanks to a flurry of unique, intertwining systems and a strong endgame that make it difficult to resist pouring an entire weekend into its endless loops. Just don’t let its poorly told story or the handful of bugs that have yet to be squashed discourage you from seeing this adventure through to the end of time. – Gabriel Moss

MLB The Show 24

From our review: Hank Aaron’s motto was “Always keep swinging,” and MLB The Show 24 does just that. It continues to push the envelope for what a baseball sim can be by adding a deep respect for the history of the sport on top of its already excellent gameplay. Season 2 of the Negro leagues is off to a fantastic start, and I can’t wait for the next episode to drop. The addition of women to that and Road to The Show emphasize Sony San Diego’s commitment to the idea that baseball is for everyone. With great new features like Custom Game Entry in Franchise, and seamless integration of Major League Baseball’s latest changes, not even a lackluster Storyline and a Diamond Dynasty mode in flux can change the fact that this is a great way to play baseball. – Justin Koreis

Palworld Early Access (Steam Version)

From our review: Even in its Early Access state, Palworld is amusingly irreverent, has a surprising amount of content and deep survival mechanics, and is absurdly difficult to put down. It’s impossible to overlook just how shamelessly it takes ideas and designs from Pokémon, it’s got some unsurprising bugs and performance issues, and the work of keeping your base’s supplies topped off needs a little retuning – but when you’re riding on the back of a flying dragon while shooting a blue duck with an assault rifle, most of those blemishes wash away entirely. This is already one of my favorite survival games, and I’m incredibly excited to see how it evolves. – Travis Northup

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

From our review​​: Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown captures not only what made games such as The Sands of Time so good, but it irons out a lot of the little issues that plagued the 3D games in this series by opting for a 2D perspective – and owning it. It also works extremely well as a traditional Metroidvania, sticking with tried-and-true elements of the genre but executing on them with precision. The story can feel a bit jumbled at times, but it’s the fast and fun combat system, the tight and satisfying controls, and the stylish look and feel that elevate Sargon’s journey and make The Lost Crown a worthy successor to the best of the Prince of Persia legacy. – Phil Hornshaw

Splatoon 3: Side Order

From our review: With already excellent weapon variety and intense combat, Splatoon 3 is a perfect fit for a roguelite game mode. Side Order’s outstanding new enemies and powerful set of abilities result in the craziest combat power trips Splatoon has ever seen. It does occasionally stumble when implementing its roguelite elements, leading to some repetitive boss fights and poor pacing. But even with those issues, this DLC is still a blast. Add in another stellar soundtrack and a distinct style that sets it apart from the rest of the series, and Side Order is a worthwhile stop at the Splatoon 3 buffet. – Logan Plant

Stargate: Timekeepers

From our review: I’m pretty pleased with the first seven episodes of Stargate: Timekeepers. SG-1 and Atlantis have been off the air for 15 years now, and it sounds like we won’t be getting any more Shadow Tactics games. So to get an experience that combines both of those bygone things I adore so effectively is a great surprise. I wish the story and characters had a bit more depth to them, and there are some issues with enemy behavior and missing keyboard shortcuts that could use a bit more polish. But overall, I would gladly venture forth through this stargate again. – Leana Hafer

The Thaumaturge

From our review: The Thaumaturge is a slow, text heavy caper that is often curious and sometimes captivating, weaving revolutionary labor politics and mysticism together to create a unique and charming piece of historical science fiction. It is eurojank through and through, filled with criss-crossing systems like gathering observations, Thaumaturge abilities, and combat that are all fun and engaging despite the sometimes hitchy controls, clunky conversations, and odd voice overs that make this journey a bumpy one. But if a little jank didn’t stop you from enjoying RPGs like Vampyr or The Witcher, you’ll be well equipped for this otherwise exciting ghost story. – Jarrett Green

Turnip Boy Robs a Bank

From our review: Turnip Boy has already committed a bunch of crimes, and he does even more in Turnip Boy Robs a Bank. While it’s not much longer than its predecessor and has similar pacing problems towards the end, this sequel has gotten a huge overhaul for the better. It’s changed genres from a dungeon crawler to an action roguelite, with massive improvements to the combat that help make that switch work. And with more quests to complete, more jokes to laugh at, and more secrets to uncover, it still holds onto what made its predecessor so charming. It goes to show that there’s always room for Turnip Boy in our lives, even if he’s killed way more people (veggies?) since the last time we saw him. – Carli Velocci

WWE 2K24

From our review: WWE 2K24 is clear proof that 2K and Visual Concepts have certainly hit their stride when it comes to making today’s package better on the whole than yesterday’s. While not drastically different, there are enough new little features added to every inch of this iteration that make it well worth climbing back into the ring. Old enemies still have their number, though, such as making its docuseries Showcase mode feel good to actually play, creating a more consistent tone and pacing in MyRise, and getting more of the current day roster up to the high visual bar that’s currently only hit by its most popular superstars. But even with those lingering annoyances, WWE 2K24 puts an impressive cap on a three year run of great wrestling games. – Jarrett Green

Best Reviewed Games 2024

Here’s our running list of the best games we reviewed in 2024. Everything scored an 8 (Great) or higher is included.

Review Score: 9 (“Amazing”)

We enthusiastically recommend that you add these games to your to-play list. If we call a game Amazing, that means something about it seriously impressed us, whether it’s an inspired new idea or an exceptional take on an old one. We expect to look back at it as one of the highlights of its time and genre.

Balatro

From our review: Remarkably approachable with complex systems waiting for those willing to lose themselves to it, Balatro successfully assembles the infinitely fun gameplay loop that every great roguelike sets out to create. It takes the fundamentally simple nature of poker’s scoring hands and shuffles in deep mechanics that don’t feel like a chore to learn but are always thrilling to exploit. A deck-builder of endlessly satisfying proportions, it’s the sort of fun that threatens to derail whole weekend plans as you stay awake far too late staring into the eyes of a jester tempting you in for just one more run. Simply put, Balatro is no joker, but in fact, ace. – Simon Cardy

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

From our review: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth impressively builds off of what Remake set in motion as both a best-in-class action-RPG full of exciting challenge and depth, and as an awe-inspiring recreation of a world that has meant so much to so many for so long. After 82 hours to finish the main story and complete a decent chunk of sidequests and optional activities, there’s still much to be done, making this pivotal section of the original feel absolutely massive. Minigames, sidequests, and other enticing diversions fill the spaces of its vast and sprawling regions, painting a new and more vivid picture of these familiar locations. But more than just being filled with things to do, Rebirth is often a powerful representation of Final Fantasy VII’s most memorable qualities. It does fumble the execution of its ending, getting caught up in the mess of its multiple twisting timelines, but new moments and the overarching journey manage to evoke a deeper sense of reflection in spite of that. So, for as flawed as parts of how this classic has been reimagined might be, Rebirth still stands out as something both thrilling and unexpectedly impactful. – Michael Higham

Helldivers 2

From our review: Helldivers 2 is the rare modern multiplayer game that does almost everything right. It gives you a ton of freedom, feels fantastic to play, and has a smart progression system that doesn’t nickel and dime you or rely too much on a paid battle pass. It manages to keep its missions fresh by introducing a ton of enemies, modifiers, and objectives, and varying them in interesting ways. There are some matchmaking and performance issues that still need to be worked out, and you can only go so far by yourself or with random players – but if you’ve got a solid squad, it’s an incredible time, and certainly one of the most fun multiplayer shooters I’ve played in years. When I’m not Helldiving, I’m thinking about Helldiving, counting down the time until my next drop. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to pour myself a nice, hot cup of Liber-tea and get back at it. Those bugs and robots look like they could use some freedom, and Managed Democracy isn’t going to spread itself. For Super Earth! – Will Borger

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth

From our review: Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth’s overhauled combat system injects some welcome flexibility and flash into every turn, its difficulty curve has been pruned of nasty spikes to remove the need for repetitive grinding we endured in the last turn-based game, and its spectacular Hawaiian setting is crammed with enough enjoyable activities to overload even the most ambitious of holiday itineraries. A compelling, country-hopping crime story kept me on the hook like a freshly lured barracuda for the 50 hours it took to complete, and the vibrant new job classes and unique combat arenas ensured that the fighting continued to feel fresh. Sprawling, enthralling, and packed with dynamic brawling, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth isn’t just the best turn-based Like a Dragon game, it’s one of the greatest games in the entire series. – Tristan Ogilvie

Persona 3 Reload

From our review: A stellar visual overhaul and countless small changes and additions beyond it leave a significant impact, making Persona 3 Reload a more fully realized version of a beloved RPG. Although still dated in some respects, quality of life improvements and new features refresh its exciting turn-based combat and add depth to its touching story moments. Through an incredible new voice cast that embodies these unforgettable characters and an endearing soundtrack to reforge its identity, Persona 3 Reload tells a powerful, timeless story of tragedy and hope with sharp emotional sincerity. This is the kind of remake I’ve hoped for, and even after spending 70 hours to see it all the way to its conclusion, I still find it hard to believe it’s real. – Michael Higham

Sons of the Forest

From our review: Sons of the Forest takes everything its predecessor did well and does it a little bit better. And considering how much I enjoyed the original, I can easily recommend this strong follow-up. Exploring a huge, beautiful, deadly island through the changing seasons is a treat on its own. The new base building mechanics could entertain me for days without ever touching the main story. And to top it all off, we have smarter and more unsettling enemy behavior paired with thoughtfully improved combat. The technical polish and touched up story since its Early Access release round out what is easily one of my favorite open world survival crafting games ever. – Leana Hafer

Tekken 8

From our review: Tekken 8 is an amazing new entry in the long-running series. Interesting tweaks to its classic fighting systems, a full suite of fun offline modes, great new characters, incredible training tools, and a vastly improved online experience all add up to a fighting game I will be playing for many years to come. By honoring its legacy, but continuing to move forward, Tekken 8 manages to stand out as something special. – Ronny Barrier

Unicorn Overlord

From our review: Reflecting on the incredibly diverse and remarkably creative world I explored across my 45-hour journey, any issues I had with Unicorn Overlord ended up feeling like nothing more than nitpicks. The tactical combat system is unique and complex while also being easy to understand, expertly blending mechanics from many of its peers with smart new additions of its own. The interesting terrain across the continent of Fevrith makes every fight feel unique, with some of the best map gimmicks I’ve seen in any strategy RPG. Because the campaign is told through the eyes of a diverse and creative cast, its trope-filled fantasy story is elevated in a way that a more traditional storytelling style wouldn’t manage. The shorter, more personal stories work wonderfully to support a loop of exploration and liberation that had me begging to see one more tale told, one more town rebuilt, and one more battle fought. – Eric Zalewski

Jordan covers games, shows, and movies as a freelance writer for IGN.