2024 was one other banner yr for video video games because of a slate of large releases, robust remakes, and shocking hits. However regardless of loads of video games that made a splash, IGN awarded just one new sport an ideal rating of 10, and a few argue that it’s not even a ‘correct’ sport. Which is it? You’ll must learn on to seek out out.
Yearly we undergo our archive of critiques to look again on the highest reviewed video games at IGN. This yr, 27 video games acquired a rating of 9 or 10, and of that just one new sport acquired a ten (the opposite 10 was given to a re-review of a very talked-about sport). This can be a marked downturn from 2023 the place 36 video games acquired our highest overview scores, together with 5 video games that acquired a ten.
That definitely doesn’t imply 2024 was a worse yr for gaming – removed from it. However one factor that’s obvious is that they had been spaced out, in contrast to final yr when the hits simply appeared to maintain on coming. In 2024, IGN didn’t give out a single 9 or 10 between the top of June and starting of September, which helps clarify why it felt a bit barren for video games on the entire. However, the yr started with a literal deluge of nice video games earlier than the noticeable summer season pause.
A Large Yr for RPGs
Within the first three months of 2024 we noticed a number of large RPGs drop, all of which scored a 9. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth was first out of the gate and continued the story of Ichiban Kasuga, who finds himself stranded on the seashores of Hawaii. Sega adopted it up with Persona 3 Reload, a full-blown remake of the beloved Atlus JRPG. Talking of, Atlus would go on to launch the most recent Vanillaware sport, Unicorn Overlord, a method RPG with the trademark attractive artwork the developer has come to be recognized for.
The final large RPG launch earlier than the summer season was of course Remaining Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the long-awaited second half of Sq. Enix’s Remaining Fantasy 7 remake mission. The sequel could be even larger than the primary, with a humongous open-world to discover with a whole lot of hours of aspect quests to pursue, all whereas reliving the occasions of Remaining Fantasy 7.
The subsequent wave of RPGs didn’t hit till October, when Atlus launched Metaphor: ReFantazio, its third RPG of the yr and arguably the largest. From the staff that introduced you the Persona sequence, Metaphor is a pure fantasy RPG that tackles a dramatic political combat for the throne, with loads of analogs to our modern-day. Elsewhere, BioWare additionally launched its first RPG in what seems like without end with Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which picks up after the occasions of the beloved Dragon Age: Inquisition.
Lastly, Sq. Enix launched one other RPG remake with the attractive Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, which reimagines the enduring JRPG in pixelated HD. Regardless of the hole between large releases, anybody who’s a fan of 100-plus hour RPGs ate extremely nicely this yr. Heck, you’re probably nonetheless grinding on a minimum of just a few of these video games.
Sim Metropolis
One other style that had a standout yr in 2024 had been sims. Whereas “simulators” is a broad class, there have been some distinctive entries into the style together with Espresso Stain Studios’ manufacturing facility simulator Passable, the place gamers got down to construct a brand new manufacturing facility on an alien planet.
There was additionally Sons of the Forest, the sequel to the hit survival sport from 2014 that’s larger and meaner than the earlier sport. And of course, the yr was capped off with the most recent Microsoft Flight Simulator, which delivered much more sensible flight time goodness.
Indies Get Their Yr
The third large pattern from 2024 was the prominence of indie video games in our checklist of finest reviewed titles. The highly-anticipated sequel, Hades 2, entered early entry and delivered on the promise of combating by way of hell as soon as extra, whereas video games like Animal Properly, 1000xResist, and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes additionally received us over because of their imaginative gameplay and storytelling. All of these video games acquired a 9, in addition to quite a few nominations within the IGN Awards.
Nonetheless, the breakout hit within the indie scene is undoubtedly Balatro, the roguelike poker sport many gamers couldn’t put down. After initially releasing on PC and consoles, Balatro is now additionally obtainable on cellular, which is the place I’ve been taking part in this twisted little roguelike. Whereas the bones of Balatro will likely be acquainted to anybody with a cursory data of poker, the ingenious modifiers and methods gamers can hit increased scores makes the lizard mind mild up in delight and deserves all of the reward it’s acquired this yr.
There was one indie sport we really gave a ten to this yr – our re-review of Stardew Valley, the comfy farming sim that’s taken the world by storm. After quite a few updates, further options, and new gameplay mechanics, Stardew Valley appears utterly totally different from the sport it was when it first launched, however no much less compelling. Virtually 9 years after it first launched, Stardew Valley remains to be going robust. And talking of going robust…
The Reside-Service Prepare Retains Going
For a lot of who persist with one sport all through the years, 2024 has delivered some nice expansions. Future 2’s latest replace, The Remaining Form, is a worthwhile finale to Bungie’s long-running shooter, whereas World of Warcraft’s newest growth, The Struggle Inside, kicks off a brand new begin for Blizzard’s beloved MMORPG.
Elsewhere, standard ongoing video games like V Rising acquired a full launch and scored a 9, and we re-reviewed Epic’s behemoth battle royale, Fortnite, which had a stellar yr thanks to a different implausible collaboration with Marvel and the latest Chapter 2 Remix, that includes rap legends Snoop Dogg and Eminem.
A brand new live-service entrant this yr that additionally acquired a 9 is Infinity Nikki. The subsequent sport within the standard Nikki vogue sequence, Infinity Nikki takes the dress-up sequence and turns it into an open-world RPG, however with full deal with what the sequence is finest recognized for: lovely garments and great outfits.
However the greatest shock this yr was Helldivers 2. Arrowhead Recreation Studios’ enjoyable and hilarious shooter was the large breakout hit of the yr, rapidly enlisting tens of millions of new recruits for its galactic area warfare. Regardless that it stumbled with some latest updates, it stays a massively standard sport and PlayStation’s large live-service win of the yr.
Large Names, Large Overview Scores
2024 was a very good yr for standard sport sequence making large returns. Tekken 8 kicked off the yr — actually — with its latest installment, which we known as an “unimaginable evolution for the sequence” because of some attention-grabbing modifications made to the traditional 3D fighter that breathes new life into the traditional fight.
The similar could be mentioned of Name of Obligation: Black Ops 6, which delivers one of the most effective Name of Obligation single-player campaigns in years because of its creativity and selection. This popcorn spy thriller, as we name it in our overview, splendidly marries the sequence’ love of bombastic, cinematic storytelling with all types of plot twists and turns that retains gamers on the sting of their seat.
The Life is Unusual sequence additionally returned with Life is Unusual: Double Publicity, which picks up with authentic franchise heroine Maxine Caulfield 10-years after the occasions of the primary sport. It’s a worthy follow-up to the slice-of-life thriller sport that kicked off the sequence.
For all you Sonic followers on the market, the brand new up to date Sonic x Shadow Generations re-release brings again one of the most effective trendy Sonic video games, however provides a wholesome heaping of everybody’s favorite-but-evil hedgehog, Shadow. If that’s not sufficient, you may catch him in theaters this vacation when he’s set to seem within the latest Sonic film.
And in the event you’re in search of an all-star solid, PlayStation launched the sport with the largest names in Astro Bot an excellent platformer that matches the standard of something its rivals at Nintendo put ou,t. There are a whole lot of collectible characters from throughout PlayStation’s greatest franchises to find, making it fairly actually a sport chock-full of large names.
One large identify that snuck in on the finish of the yr is Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle. MachineGames’ first sport since ending up its Wolfenstein reboots is one other rollicking, nazi-punching journey that brings the movie hero to the AAA video games period. It’s not solely a giant win for Indy followers, however for Xbox Games Studios that lastly has a bonafide hit.
Nintendo’s Quiet Yr
Nintendo had a a lot quieter yr in 2024 and it didn’t have huge new releases like 2023’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, probably as a result of it’s busy engaged on a successor to Swap. However that doesn’t imply there weren’t any hits from the Mario Home this yr.
Moderately than large blockbusters, Nintendo’s notable video games had been from surprising sequence. The new Mario Occasion sport, Tremendous Mario Occasion Jamboree, acquired a 9 because of a return to fundamentals strategy of the beloved social gathering sport system. And Paper Mario: The Thousand-Yr Door acquired a full on remake for the Nintendo Swap, and an Editor’s Alternative award to go together with it.
Nintendo did have one shock this yr, which is the primary Zelda sport that truly stars Princess Zelda. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Knowledge returns to the top-down Zelda world final seen in The Legend of Zelda: Hyperlink’s Awakening, together with utilizing the identical toy-like artwork fashion. However the Echoes puzzle mechanic, the place Zelda can summon on a regular basis objects she memorizes, results in all types of pleasant surprises. Assume the liberty of Tears of the Kingdom combined with the artwork fashion of Hyperlink’s Awakening and also you’re heading in the right direction
The Large 10
Other than Stardew Valley’s re-review, just one new sport acquired a ten from IGN this yr, and it was none apart from FromSoftware’s first Elden Ring DLC, Shadow of the Erdtree. This new growth not solely provides a whole new space to The Lands Between to discover, however a set of new weapons, armors, and even fight kinds like martial arts, makes FromSoftware’s magnum opus even higher.
But it surely’s not simply merely a beefy growth with hundreds of content material. The world of Elden Ring is wealthy with lore and the story Shadow of the Erdtree tells provides new layers to that wealthy textual content. The backstories for characters like Queen Marika and Miquella are each enlightening and tragic, and the sense of discovery gamers get when uncovering these secrets and techniques show that no one does world design fairly like FromSoftware. This growth is so large it virtually seems like a sequel.
Whereas a DLC like this received’t be nominated for IGN’s Recreation of the Yr shortlist (spoiler: it would Best DLC!)We perceive how a monumental sport like Shadow of the Erdtree can compete for gaming’s high prize.
And that’s a glance again at the most effective reviewed video games of the yr. For extra from the IGN Awards, take a look at our full checklist of winners in all of our totally different award classes for the yr.
Matt Kim is IGN’s Senior Options Editor. You’ll be able to attain him @lawoftd.