In 2024, we noticed video games the place troopers dove headfirst into alien planets to defend Earth, Princess Zelda led her very personal legend, just a little robotic overcame unattainable odds to rescue PlayStation’s biggest characters, and a recreation of poker performed out not like the rest.
There may be arguments for why any variety of our Best Game of 2024 nominees might take dwelling the crown, a stark distinction from final yr the place Baldur’s Gate 3 and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom have been locked-in favorites. The breadth of video games on show, from Black Myth: Wukong to Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, means choosing this yr’s winner was tougher than typical, however in the end there was one clear winner. Here’s IGN’s Best Game of 2024.
Honorable Mentions
Before we get to the general winner, let’s look again at a few of the different video games from this yr that deserve your recognition, beginning with our Honorable Mentions. These nominees have been much-loved by IGN’s editorial group however didn’t get as many votes as our winner and runners-up.
The Rise of the Golden Idol
The thriller is afoot within the sequel to 2022’s pleasant point-and-click recreation The Case of the Golden Idol. Set 200 years after the occasions of the primary recreation, Rise of the Golden Idol returns with extra devilishly intelligent puzzles the place you remedy varied crimes that start to mix into one grand thriller.
Infinity Nikki
The Fashion Nikki sequence has all the time had its share of devotees. The dress-up simulator was a pleasing, cozy method to move the time, amassing totally different outfits and making your character as cute as they are often. But Infinity Nikki is a daring reinvention, combining all the weather followers beloved, together with the wonderful outfits they might create, and including a vibrant, Zelda-like open-world to discover.
Silent Hill 2
There have been doubts as as to if Bloober Team might faithfully remake one of the vital beloved horror video games of all time. Even Bloober admitted as a lot, citing the combined reception a few of their earlier horror video games have obtained. But the dedication to do proper by the supply materials paid off as Silent Hill 2 delivers one of many scariest – and finest – gaming experiences of the yr. Faithful to every little thing that made the unique nice, whereas updating the rusty, growing old bits superbly, Silent Hill 2 embodies every little thing that’s nice concerning the authentic after which some.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
The Prince of Persia, one in all gaming’s forgotten greats, lastly bought a brand new entry worthy of the Prince’s title. This 2.5D Metroidvania delivers one of the vital exhilarating revivals of any franchise in latest reminiscence, and with its tight controls, glorious motion, and swashbuckling storytelling, that is the perfect Prince of Persia recreation since Sands of Time.
Black Myth: Wukong
Black Myth: Wukong captivated audiences ever since its first trailer was revealed, however that was solely part of the story. Yes, the boss fights are epic, and the fight is elegant, however this loving recreation of one in all China’s oldest, most beloved tales means hundreds of thousands of gamers can lastly respect the legend of the Monkey Prince in a complete new approach.
Animal Well
One of the earliest surprises of the yr was Animal Well. On the floor, it’s one other well-made homage to previous 2D Metroidvania video games. But the deeper you go, the extra you understand Animal Well isn’t all that it seems. While the core gameplay and platforming are glorious, you rapidly uncover there’s a large puzzle on the coronary heart of all of it. So take out your pocket book and prepare to place your mind to work to uncover the reality behind Animal Well.
Runner-Up: Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Next up are video games that have been oh-so-close to being topped Game of the Year, however narrowly missed out to the general winner. MachineGames is again with one other Nazi-punching blockbuster. And no, this isn’t a brand new Wolfenstein recreation. Instead, the Swedish studio has endeavored to deliver one in all cinema’s biggest heroes into the fashionable gaming age. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is actually a really nice Indiana Jones film dropped at life. And by actually nice, we imply up there with the unique trilogy. Buoyed by Troy Baker’s frankly insane portrayal of Harrison Ford’s iconic archeologist, The Great Circle appears like a dream come true for anybody who grew up enraptured by films like The Last Crusade and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Indy was by no means a shoot ‘em up hero; as a substitute he used his brains in addition to his brawn to resolve historical riddles and punch out dangerous guys, and that’s one thing MachineGames has splendidly tailored right here. Whether it’s exploring the traditional catacombs of The Vatican or sneaking up on fascists and bonking them over the pinnacle, The Great Circle actually places you into the dirt-caked footwear of Indiana Jones, and it seems it’s each bit as enjoyable and thrilling as we imagined.
Runner-Up: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
“Why is it referred to as The Legend of Zelda if it stars Link?” is a query most have requested at one level of their life. Well, ask no extra as Echoes of Wisdom places Zelda in control of her personal legend on this new top-down journey recreation. Visually much like the 2019 remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, Echoes of Wisdom could be very a lot a real Zelda recreation, full with the traditional puzzles and dungeons the sequence is thought for.
Its creators have clearly discovered from newer video games within the sequence too, and although Echoes of Wisdom is extra of a “traditional” Zelda expertise, the freeform creativity of Breath of the Wild is current due to the Echoes mechanic that lets Zelda conjure no matter merchandise and enemy she encounters, resulting in all types of madcap options. Stuck on the opposite aspect of a ledge? Just stack a bunch of beds collectively to cross. Duh.
Runner-Up: Helldivers 2
Are you doing all of your half within the battle to save lots of our galaxy? If not, leap into Helldivers 2 and begin blasting away at alien and robotic scum. Arrowhead Game Studios delivered one of many new live-service video games of the yr with the sequel to its isometric alien shooter. Reimagined as a squad-based third-person shooter, Helldivers 2 is each a satirical tackle the military-industrial advanced whereas additionally being an addictive blast due to its potent mixture of high-powered weaponry, devastating orbital drop missiles, and a spirit of Earthian patriotism.
Runner-Up: Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth
After the prelude that was Final Fantasy 7: Remake, we lastly get to the center of the journey within the second in Square Enix’s deliberate trilogy. Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth encompasses a few of the most necessary moments from the unique, however greater than that stands by itself as a superb open world RPG.
What stands out virtually instantly is how a lot love Square Enix has for these characters. It’s clear Square Enix desires gamers to spend as a lot time as they’ll with Cloud, Aerith, Tifa, Barrett, and Red XIII, offering loads of aspect quests and minigames, and increasing whole moments in order that we will all spend simply grasp with the gang some extra earlier than they resume their mission within the struggle towards Sephiroth. It makes these moments all of the extra invaluable too, given the ending to Rebirth and the approaching finale.
Runner-Up: Astro Bot
Astro Bot’s life started as a humble mascot for the Playroom tech demo. Anytime Sony had some new {hardware} to point out off — whether or not it was the PS VR headset, or the PlayStation 5 — Astro Bot was there to information gamers by the ins-and-outs of no matter new system Sony wished to point out off. But with Astro Bot, the lovely little mascot lastly takes middle stage.
This colourful, vibrant 3D platformer isn’t only a showcase for the PS5’s highly effective GPU and quick SSD, as a result of between the unbridled degree of creativity in every degree and the controller-stressing problem of a few of the tougher problem runs, Astro Bot is pure delight and wonderment. Every capacity Astro Bot performs round with — from inflating right into a balloon or punching enemies with bungee fists — by no means fails to amuse even essentially the most hardened gamer. I don’t say this calmly, however PlayStation may need simply discovered its reply to Nintendo’s Mario.
Runner-Up: Dragon Age: The Veilguard
After a quick interlude into the live-service style with video games like Anthem, and a maybe ill-advised try and rush out one other Mass Effect recreation with Mass Effect: Andromeda, BioWare has gone again to what it is aware of finest – a very good old style, dungeon-crawling RPG filled with pleasant characters, witty dialogue, and the prospect to create a personality who seems and talks precisely the way in which you need them to. But whereas BioWare could have opted for a back-to-basics strategy to storytelling, there’s one space of main enchancment: the fight.
It’s not unfair to say that is the perfect a BioWare recreation has ever performed, from its sword-and-sorcery fight to even the way in which you traverse the myriad of dungeons and mystical locales. While we’re just one recreation into the BioWare renaissance, all eyes are again on the storied studio.
Runner-Up: Balatro
“It’s only a poker recreation with some roguelike mechanics,” I bear in mind saying to associates, incredulously, after they first informed me they spent all evening enjoying just a little recreation referred to as Balatro. “How good might or not it’s?” Turns out after tens of hundreds of poker palms and a whole lot of hours spent enjoying, Balatro nonetheless has me wrapped round its fingers.
Loads may be mentioned about Balatro’s addictive qualities and the way it has this magnetic capacity to get you to play only one extra spherical. The purpose for Balatro’s speedy ascendency is the way it took one in all America’s oldest video games and refashioned it for one in all gaming’s hottest genres, the roguelike. The mixture of traditional poker guidelines and randomized Joker and Tarot playing cards that increase your combos and bump up your excessive rating so you may get to the subsequent spherical is pure gaming bliss. Balatro is constructed on creating seemingly infinite moments of elation and devastation in equal measures. All you must do is play your playing cards proper… actually.
Winner: Metaphor: ReFantazio
For years, Atlus’ cult-RPG Persona went from being a cool underground RPG sequence from Japan to one of many largest franchises in trendy gaming. But with Metaphor: ReFantazio, it’s clear the builders behind Persona have been looking for to push themselves to new heights. Trading within the modern-day Japanese highschool setting for a pure fantasy world filled with long-eared knights and bat-like ninjas, Atlus’ Studio Zero has created an unbelievable and well timed meditation on political strife and demagoguery.
After the demise of the King, the United Kingdom of Euchronia, divided by racial prejudice amongst its residents, begins the method of holding its very first fashionable election that kickstarts a grand, cross-continental journey. For anybody acquainted with the Persona sequence, you’ll discover acquainted hallmarks right here. Players cut up their time crawling by troublesome dungeons filled with horrifying monsters, whereas spending free moments increase relationships with varied occasion members and inhabitants across the nation.
But whereas the Persona video games took these quiet moments to reaffirm the virtues of youthful friendships, Metaphor makes use of these occasions to sort out headier questions. What defines a knight’s obligation, or the obligations of these born into wealth? Can one ever heal from the pains of racism, and is spiritual tolerance a foolhardy endeavor? These aren’t straightforward questions to deal with however are requested plainly all through Metaphor’s 70-hour playtime.
While Studio Zero refrains from giving clear-cut solutions to those questions, it as a substitute acknowledges the virtues of empathy, kindness, and energy within the face of overwhelming worry and hatred that may take root in an unsure world the place leaders promise salvation in alternate for unwavering loyalty. Wrap these philosophical musings in a trendy, turn-based RPG that appears and feels stupendous — full with lovely character designs from artist Shigenori Soejima and music from Shoji Meguro – and also you’ll rapidly perceive why Metaphor: ReFantazio is IGN’s choose for Best Game of 2024.
So congratulations to Metaphor: ReFantazio and Studio Zero, and likewise to all of our different winners and runner-ups in 2024’s IGN Awards. Be certain to take a look at our full checklist of Award Winners for Best Movie, TV Show, and extra, and we’ll see you once more in 2025 for much more gaming goodness.
