That’s because it’s bringing a long list of balancing changes to systems governing your hunger (like reducing the drain while sleeping) and recovery from it alongside other changes like nifty new additions to vendor shops, legendary upgrades for DLC weapon blueprints, and some clever changes to you inventory management that ensure you don’t miss out on new gear thanks to a shortage of space in your inventory and stash. The complete list, which you can check below, showcases Techland’s determination to ensure Restored Land is as close to perfect as it can be for its players.

For our part, we were quite happy with what the update has brought to the table, its new modes and other additions making the game feel fresh enough to warrant another playthrough. Check out our thoughts here. Dying Light: The Beast is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC – head here for our review of the launch version.

Hotfix 1.6.1 – Restored Land Edition (1.6)

• Reduced hunger drain when sleeping
• Slower overall hunger depletion
• “Very Hungry” and “Famished” states now trigger later
• Vendors now offer improvised food bars
• Weapon Blueprints from DLC bundles can now be upgraded to Legendary rarity
• When receiving a new weapon during a cutscene with a full inventory, the lowest-quality weapon is automatically moved to the stash
• If both inventory and stash are full, the lowest-quality weapon is dropped on the ground
• “Better Be Safe” and “Peace Bringer” achievements no longer auto-complete
• Night chases rebalanced – Level 1 chases are now slightly easier to escape
• Increased chances to loot rags and bandages from Biters and Virals
• Fixed the crossplay connection between Steam and Epic
• Fixed the issue with amount of ammo that the Player can loot from ranged human enemies being capped
• Fixed the issue with Player dropping equipped weapon after entering Slasher arena
• Fixed the issue with hunger meter missing throughout the fight with The Beast
• Fixed the issue with Alpha Volatile sometimes not spawning during Chase sequences on Restored Land
• Fixed the issue with “Days Survived” being counted after starting a race
• Fixed the issue with Leaderboards sometimes missing
• Fixed the issue with message about Restored Area always appearing after loading a save
• Fixed the issue with some encounters being unresponsive
• Fixed the issue with Items Found values in the Leaderboard section
• Fixed the broken Night Cycle after quitting to the main menu during challenge
• Fixed a few collisions in new Roadkill Rallies
• Fixed the issue with item stacks being incorrectly subtracted while moved to the Stash
• Fixed the issue with Player receiving the achievement “Apex Predator” without killing a Volatile after a cutscene in “One flew over the Volatiles’ nest” mission
• Fixed the issue with SFX missing after failing to load a broken save file
• Fixed the issue with infinite death loop happening after Player gets out of map/playable area during Roadkill Rally
• Fixed various unresponsive NPC’s while playing in Coop

Headlining the update is the eponymous Restored Land mode, which is meant to be a new way to experience Dying Light: The Beast all over again. When enabled, the mode introduces a way for players, once more taking on the role of Kyle Crane, to restore Castor Woods to something at least a little closer to its former glory. Zombies killed in Restored Land mode won’t ever respawn. On the other hand, resources you’ve already looted won’t come back either, which introduces an interesting double-edged sword. That means you have to be much more careful when moving through any given area. Sure, you can eventually clear out a place well enough so that zombies can’t ever come back. But at the same time, you also end up losing the easiest way in the game to get your hands on basic resources like crafting materials: the zombies themselves.

The balance is skewed even further against the player thanks to resources being a lot more scarce, and repeatable activities that often tend to be a great way to grind out more materials can only be completed once. When it comes to actually playing through the mode, these limitations create some genuinely great moments where I had to stop and think through my next moves. Sure, I could always use some extra crafting materials, and I was certainly strong enough to take on a certain Dark Zone. But then I had to ask myself: “Do I really need those materials right now, or would I be better off waiting instead of draining my already-limited flashlight battery?” Restored Land mode, for all intents and purposes, turned Dying Light: The Beast—otherwise a pretty fun power fantasy—into a much more cerebral experience.

While the update also added more ways to ramp up the difficulty, like a One Life mode that results in permadeath, I chose not to use them, since I was already having a hard enough time trying to survive as it is. I haven’t finished a full Restored Land playthrough yet, so I can’t really comment on the usefulness of the rewards, but doing so will likely take me much longer than my first playthrough, since it encourages a slower pace thanks to resource constraints. I did find the act of taking out all zombies in an area quite rewarding, however, and it was a lot of fun to take a leisurely stroll through these zones without having to worry about anything. My only real complaint with the whole experience was the fact that co-op—one of my favorite features of the game overall—isn’t available in Restored Land.

"When it comes to actually playing through the mode, these limitations create some genuinely great moments where I had to stop and think through my next moves."

The update also brought with it one of my favorite new side-activities—Roadkill Rallies. Strewn around the more open parts of Castor Woods, the Roadkill Rally activity revolves entirely around your driving skill and rewards you based on how many zombies you can run over from point A to point B. While simple in concept and execution, Roadkill Rallies become a fun way to compete with friends on a leaderboard. And as an added cherry on top, you don’t have to be playing in Restored Land mode, which also means you can take on Roadkill Rallies in co-op.

Aside from Restored Land mode itself, the update’s meatiest additions are a host of new event-based side quests. Rather than seeking them out on the map and making your way to them, however, these new quests tend to pop up depending on the area you’re passing through and what route you’re taking. These new quests largely revolve around telling small stories about what might have happened to nearby survivors. The studio has noted that these quests were added in an attempt to “make the journey between main quest moments more engaging,” and I think these new quests achieve that quite well. They feel like a natural part of your journey as you parkour or drive your way through Castor Woods, and can often add to the sense of place that the setting has always excelled at.

What helps even more is the fact that these quests don’t even tend to be particularly long. They tend to be relatively simple affairs, often revolving around a single fight or a couple of conversations before you return to your journey. They can be quite varied, ranging from a simple inter-faction battle over a truck full of useful resources, to finding new outposts set up by the Baron’s forces. These aren’t really meant to tell any deep and emotional stories on their own. Rather, they act more like quick encounters that help flesh out the world of Castor Woods, and their relatively dynamic nature also has the added benefit of making the open-world game feel more alive.

"These new quests largely revolve around telling small stories about what might have happened to nearby survivors."

I’d also be remiss not to mention the many improvements Dying Light: The Beast has received through its extensive post-launch support. My favorite of these has been the added depth to the parkour systems. Rather than making any single, sweeping change to the traversal, however, the studio instead added a range of smaller improvements through additional animations that are only really obvious to those who may have already spent some time with the game. This has resulted in on-foot traversal generally feeling a lot smoother. Additions like Legend Levels for level-capped players also provide more excuses to just hang around in Castor Woods to take on some of its tougher challenges.

Generally speaking, Techland did some fantastic work with Restored Land, breathing new life into the already-fantastic Dying Light: The Beast. Thanks to the plethora of new content, new players have plenty to sink their teeth into, while those of us who had already considered ourselves “done” with the game have a great reason to come back: its headline new mode for fresh playthroughs. The new event-based side quests also offer some fantastic new opportunities for environmental storytelling depending on how you approach them and where they appear, and Roadkill Rallies are yet another great way to make traveling between faraway points more interesting.

When it comes to PC performance, Dying Light: The Beast already ran very well, and Restored Land hasn’t slowed it down one bit. With most of the visual settings cranked up to max, I was able to maintain steady frame rates of well over 60 FPS while playing at a resolution of 2560×1440. This was on an upper-mid-range PC featuring an AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D CPU, a Radeon RX 7800 XT GPU, and 32 GB of RAM.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

Kyle’s going to have to be very careful in this new take on the Castor Woods, as resources are now rarer and more pricey, while an optional permadeath mode can make even the slightest mistake very costly indeed. However, it’s not as bleak as it looks, as high-risk areas remain blissfully clear of zombies once you take them all out, which applies to zombies out in the open world as well. It’s going to be a chaotic yet rewarding gameplay loop, and if you already own a copy of the game, it’s available as a free update.

This is an edition we would recommend without hesitation, as we found the base game to be quite the entertainer and a worthy sequel to its predecessors. The new edition seems like it’s additions are all meaningful changes that can build on an already excellent gameplay loop to take it to new heights. More information on the new edition can be found here.

Described as changing the “rules of gameplay,” it offers “a highly challenging solo-only mode” that promises “the ultimate survival experience.” Restored Land essentially makes the open world of Castor Woods persistent. It means that zombies cleared from an area won’t respawn.

However, it also means that loot and resources won’t reappear, and activities such as convoys, dark zones, etc. can’t be repeated. To make things even more challenging, there are limited supplies overall, and vendors will charge higher prices. If that’s not enough, you need to deal with “intensified” hunger and flashlight requirements. Failing to keep Kyle Crane well-fed will result in penalties, and you’ll need to replace the flashlight’s batteries.

For the truly hardcore, there’s an option to enable One Life, which does pretty much what it says: Die once, and that’s it. You’ll need to start all over.

Completing a Restored Land run will unlock “prestigious items” and “visible recognition” (likely a skin), but that’s not all. New Roadkill Rallies provide fresh challenges for those driven (pun fully intended) to race against the clock and splatter any infected along the way. Completing this unlocks an “amazing reinforced version of a car built for even more distraction in the open world.”

You can also look forward to numerous improvements and new Achievements, quest encounters and finishers. Performance is also getting a noticeable bump, so stay tuned when Restored Land goes live later this week (and check out the behind-the-scenes trailer courtesy of IGN below).

So it’s all the more impressive that the video game industry, be it triple-A developers, independent studios (even with the backing of major publishers) and smaller creators, can craft such a wide range of terrifying games, year in and year out. While that also means a heaping helping of shovelware – awful releases that wouldn’t even muster a simple yawn – a select few rise above the rabble to dominate.

Here are our nominees for the best horror game of 2025, starting with…

Routine

Between development troubles and even stopping development, only to restart in 2020, it’s almost impressive that Lunar Software’s first game was released at all, much less received such positive praise. Nevertheless, it’s pretty much what we expected – a slow, methodical trip down the retro futuristic rabbit hole in a station filled with killer robots. Even if the story doesn’t quite stick the landing, being immersed in this surreal world and awkwardly feeling your way through is more than worth the price of admission.

Tormented Souls 2

Old-school survival horror with its save rooms, fixed camera angles, and tank controls – you really couldn’t ask more from Dual Effect, especially after the surprising success of Tormented Souls. However, the sequel actually improves a lot, from more intricate puzzles and exploration to far better lighting that adds the oh-so creepy mood. Caroline Walker may never really catch a break, but her escapades make for some tense gameplay, if nothing else.

The Midnight Walk

If there’s one medium that’s adept at portraying adorably terrifying creatures, it’s claymation, and MoonHood uses it to full effect here. There’s an almost Tim Burton-like vibe to this tale of The Burnt One struggling to protect Potboy, who houses an alluring flame, from the various horrors of this mysterious world. The Midnight Walk straddles a fine line between beauty and terror while remaining engaging throughout.

Silent Hill f

Of course, it’s not just about balancing beauty and terror – sometimes, you can find each in the other, as Konami’s latest mainline Silent Hill showcases. Venturing outside the US for the first time, taking place in the fictitious Ebisugaoka in the 1960s, it’s a rural horror unlike anything the franchise has seen thus far. Deeply disturbing and unrelenting with its gore, yet never descending into senseless brutality, it’s a psychological trip that’s worth taking.

Total Chaos

A Doom 2 total conversion turned full-fledged horror by Sam Prebble of Turbo Overkill fame, this essentially captures all the reality-bending horror the former strived for. Between fighting grotesque horrors across Fort Oasis and trying to discover the truth of yourself, you’re crafting rudimentary weapons to fight back – all the while diving even deeper into this surprisingly meaty nightmare.

Hell is Us

While much of the emphasis remained on dungeon diving and getting by without any hand holding, Remi’s journey through the war-torn remains of Hadea isn’t without some disturbing sights. War crimes abound, but even discovering mountains of corpses and gruesome murders all in the name of ancient practices, which all connect back to the country’s bloody history, can get heavy. You won’t have to worry about jump scares or such, but it’s a stressful experience throughout.

Little Nightmares 3

It’s a shame that Supermassive didn’t innovate much on the gameplay because, in terms of the atmosphere and aesthetic, the spiral of Low and Alone through Nowhere is delightfully dreadful. Witness the Carnevale, with its sentient puppets that won’t stop attacking until you crush their heads. Flee the Supervisor, whose smile is almost as frightening as her Candy Factory. The frights may not be as out-and-out, but the sights remain as disturbing as ever.

Sleep Awake

Imagine if sleep were the enemy – the domain of an entity known as The Hush, who spirits away those that can’t resist nap time. Now imagine being one of the last few people on Earth trying to maintain their sanity. It’s an unconventional premise, sure, and Blumhouse Games further reinforces the surreality by mixing full-motion video with some gameplay sequences. Despite the iffy stealth sections and walking sim-like nature, its narrative stands strong.

Dying Light: The Beast

What’s there to be afraid of when my boy Kyle Crane, making his return after years in exile, can now rip apart zombies with his bare hands? As it turns out, when the sun goes down, everything. Volatiles are more ruthless, intelligent and brutal than ever, and we couldn’t be happier. It’s finally an achievement to survive the nighttime, which now looks properly foreboding and oppressive (the makeup of Castor Woods helps as well).

Cronos: The New Dawn

If Bloober Team was under immense pressure to deliver with Silent Hill 2 remake, then you have to wonder how much higher expectations were afterwards. Lo and behold, Cronos is another compelling survival horror – different, sure, especially with its post-apocalyptic body horror, sci-fi leanings, and unique premise, but still unrelentingly, stressfully frightening.

And the winner of the Best Horror Game of 2025 goes to…

Silent Hill f

Much like when Bloober Team was announced to remake Silent Hill 2, many were skeptical that NeoBards Entertainment could deliver a new mainline Silent Hill. Going back to the past is one thing, but forging a new experience forward, especially for a studio known for flops like RE:Verse and Resident Evil: Resistance? It seemed like Konami had lost its mind.

But it also announced that Higurashi no Naku Koro ni writer Ryukishi07 was penning the narrative while the brilliant kera handled the characters and creatures. Slowly and surely, despite skepticism surrounding its combat, Silent Hill f morphed into a compelling product. None of this could prepare anyone, even fans of the series, for what they would expect when stepping into the shoes of Shimizu Hinako. Heck, even Konatsu Kato, her Japanese voice actor, continues to be traumatized in her playthrough (to the entertainment of thousands, of course).

Suffice it to say, this is a masterclass in terror and pacing with grotesquely beautiful creatures that you couldn’t tear your eyes from. It offers a strong narrative with even stronger characterization (and a surprising number of layers thanks to its multiple endings). Did we mention the fantastic sound design and soundtrack? And as noted before, everything that you see, regardless of how brutal and cruel it can be, serves a purpose. It’s not unlike the symbolism seen in the series’s best games – just tackling new and undeniably uncomfortable themes.

I could go on, but the result is a powerful horror experience that makes you almost forget about the above-average combat. As a result, Silent Hill f is our pick for the top horror game of 2025. Walk in with as few spoilers as possible – you won’t regret it (maybe).

But which is the absolute crème of the crop? Let’s dive into our nominees for the best graphics of 2025, starting with…

Ghost of Yōtei

Everything about Sucker Punch’s sequel is a massive improvement over Ghost of Tsushima, and that especially applies to the visuals. Much greater draw distance with almost no noticeable pop-in, more details, higher quality textures and materials, improved effects – there’s even seamlessly implemented ray-traced global illuminations. All in all, whether you’re in the throes of combat with swords clashing and mud splashing or speeding through fields of flowers, Ghost of Yōtei doesn’t disappoint.

Silent Hill f

Between the expressive facial animations and grotesque environments, Silent Hill f is a nightmarishly stunning experience. Its environments are packed with incredible texture work and backed by realistic lighting and shadows that accentuate every gruesome reveal. Then there are the monsters, designed by kera, which strike a nauseating fine line between beauty and dread.

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

After pushing the limits of the Decima Engine in the original, Kojima Productions somehow goes even further beyond in Death Stranding 2. Gazing upon mountain ranges with nary a hint of slowdown or pop-in, the phenomenal character models with realistic skin textures – it’s a feast for the eyes, and only gets better as you progress further in. For instance, the entire first encounter against Neal and his soldiers? Simply amazing.

DOOM: The Dark Ages

Count on id Software to take technology like ray-traced global illumination and make it a core part of its game while still delivering incredible optimization. Like its predecessors, DOOM: The Dark Ages focuses on brutally fast, though definitely more methodical, combat, but it still packs some fantastic sights like projectiles reflecting off glossy surfaces, more realistic environmental destruction and stellar atmospherics. All of this results in easily one of the best-looking shooters of all time.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Another excellent showcase of RTGI, Assassin’s Creed Shadows brings late Sengoku-era Japan to life in surprisingly stunning ways. However, it’s all the other details that help the experience come together so well, from the physics-based weather and realistic wind to the environmental destruction (especially when destroying a stand and watching dozens of fruit tumble onto the street). The depiction of various cities and castles is also incredible, making this feel like a lived-in world.

Clair Obscur: Expedition

No, Sandfall Interactive’s debut role-playing game isn’t the result of only 32 people and a dog, but you have to admit: Its visuals stretch the definition of “double-A” to an obscene degree. While balancing its fantastical painterly art direction with realism, it delivers some truly surreal environments and moments, packed with detailed shadows and lighting. Even the world map with its diorama-like layout looks incredible.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2

If you played the original Kingdom Come: Deliverance, then the sequel’s outstanding visuals shouldn’t be a surprise. However, the universal leap in quality is mind-boggling, especially considering the increased scale. The composition of the cutscenes and facial expressions of its cast are only the start as you’re treated to realistic fire, rainfall, and excruciatingly detailed foliage. And it all runs like a dream.

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater

Having more detailed and realistic character models and environments than the original is only the start. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater goes to extensive lengths to look drop-dead amazing – extensively complex skin meshes, a physically based material system for the clothing, Lumen GI for realistic lighting and shadows, the list goes on. Of course, even with the improved facial expressions, Konami retained every single element of the original’s quirky presentation, and we couldn’t be happier.

F1 25

Say what you will about its improvements over previous games, F1 25 still highlights the sheer beauty of the racing sim series. LIDAR technology results in more realistic tracks, but the implementation of path tracing, which enhances lighting, reflections and sheer detail, especially during various weather conditions, is excellent. Of course, Codemasters’ penchant for painstakingly crafting its F1 vehicles remains as praise-worthy as ever.

Battlefield 6

With the amount of time and resources invested in Battlefield 6’s development, it’s somewhat surprising that it looks this good despite the lack of ray tracing and other advanced features. Nevertheless, the presentation is off the charts, whether you’re running through an active battle with jets screaming overhead or watching buildings torn apart, their debris realistically scattering. The fact that it achieves all this while still offering buttery smooth performance is yet another win.

Dying Light: The Beast

Speaking of not offering ray tracing and still looking incredibly good is Techland’s Dying Light: The Beast. Lighting is a core element of the franchise, and its implementation is especially impressive here, as is the extensive range of parkour animations (which play out seamlessly) and revamped damage model. Striking enemies with melee weapons creates realistic cuts and deformations to a gruesome degree, giving melee combat that extra bit of edge.

The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered

Virtuos opted for an intriguing dual-engine approach here, retaining the original code base and core while overhauling the visuals in Unreal Engine 5. Sure, it’s resulted in some problems, but Cyrodiil comes to life like never before. Emperor Uriel, with his realistic wrinkles and excruciatingly fine cloth textures, is only the start as the environments and NPCs are brimming with details.

ARC Raiders

Several Unreal Engine 5 titles come under fire for their poor optimization and performance issues. Then you have ARC Raiders, which offers exceptionally peak performance. Achieving this meant opting away from the likes of Lumen and Nanite, but the fidelity is still surprisingly strong. Reflective surfaces on ARC, realistic-looking weather, detailed destruction – it’s almost enough to make you forget that this is a multiplayer shooter.

Borderlands 4

Once you surmount the various technical problems on PC, there’s no denying that Borderlands 4 is a great-looking game. Gearbox’s signature cel-shading style looks more nuanced than ever, and it’s impressive given the scale of its environments, the seamless exploration, and the surprisingly complex character designs (especially the enemies).

Hell is Us

There’s an eerie atmosphere to Hell is Us, made all the more tangible with the presence of Time Rifts and otherworldly creatures in otherwise realistic, war-torn environments. While it required further optimization at launch, discovering Lake Cynon’s lush field of blue flowers or exploring the sleek interiors of Auriga Museum still made for some startling moments, further bolstered by the excellent texture quality, lighting and reflections.

And the title with the Best Graphics of 2025 is…

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

Let’s be real – this generation hasn’t exactly been brimming with titles that push the graphical envelope. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is, of course, the exception and it becomes apparent in the opening minutes. Quick cuts of Mexico, the first location, look almost identical to real life. The skin tone on the characters, alongside details like realistic sweat and retinas, also makes them feel that much more alive. And mind you, this is before Australia, where the sheer breadth of the world is unveiled, from the different biomes to the real-time weather effects (including dust storms).

We mentioned the battle against Neal and the impressive use of lighting, reflective puddles and effects, but it’s even more incredible how this is achieved with screen-space reflections rather than ray-tracing. If all of this wasn’t enough, seamlessly going from the main menu right into the game underscores just how ahead of the curve Death Stranding 2 is of the competition. For that reason and many more, it’s our pick for the best graphics of 2025.

But as with every other genre we’ve covered, some games have just surged ahead of their peers thanks to unique features and gameplay innovations that make the experience they offer unforgettable and very entertaining to play. And of course, one of them does the job so well it’s our favorite one of the year.

Without further ado, here are the nominees for the best action-adventure game of 2025.

1. Mafia: The Old Country

Going back to the early days of organized crime, this romp through the Sicilian countryside in a story that was quite interesting brings everything that’s good about the Mafia franchise to the table. Its visuals were outstanding, complementing the narrative while the gameplay remained as exciting as it has always been in the franchise.

Enzo’s tryst with the Torrisi family is a title worth checking out if you happened to miss it earlier this year. If we were to complain, it would only be to lament that there isn’t more of it to play.

2. Ninja Gaiden 2 Black

Blending the best of the original experience and Sigma 2, this one took us right back to fond memories of the game, while getting to revisit any of Ryu’s adventures is always going to draw us in. But having three new characters to play, while New Game Plus mode is an option, makes this an action title that can have you very invested in its systems and mechanics.

It’s also quite rewarding, with the combat system allowing you to pull off some spectacular combos in battle, provided you know how to wield your weapons effectively. Give this one a go for some old-school fun.

3. Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Hunting down the Shinbakufu across ancient Japan was an absolute delight in the game’s take on a very interesting time period. With a world designed for Naoe’s unique brand of parkour and combat that allowed Yasuke to truly shine as a great take on a tank character, this was among our favorite ones to explore to its fullest.

The new and improved stealth mechanics can have you clearing out entire castles without anyone even realizing you were there, which is always welcome in an Assassin’s Creed title. We recommend making the most of its Exploration Mode if you’re looking for an authentic experience.

4. Split Fiction

Mio and Zoe’s excellently written story is definitely something you want to bring a friend along to. Split Fiction ticks all of the right boxes with some incredible level designs, great bosses and enemies, and a premise that sets the stage for the game to truly shine.

It’s full of wit, charm, emotional heft, and references to some very popular names in modern entertainment for you to tease out. While the AI does allow you to experience the game fairly well, this one shines when there’s a second player at your side. It’s a game that’s so much fun you’d probably just dive right back in for the heck of it.

5. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond

Playing as Samus in Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a complete blast, and despite a few unwelcome enemies on your journey this time around, this is a game that blends an excellent world with an intriguing setting that sucks you in with an explosive introductory sequence and then sets you on your way to a lot of fun.

Samus gets some powers, too, and using them to navigate the world around you and also in combat could be the recipe for a lot of fun evenings if you decide to give this one a go.

6. Metal Gear Solid Delta Snake Eater

Konami did well to bring a near perfect remake of the original Snake Eater, allowing an entirely new generation of gamers to learn more about why this franchise enjoys the almost reverent respect that it does. Naked Snake’s first foray with forces beyond his world view is a pleasure to play through, and of course, there’s always FOX Hunt for some multiplayer fun.

This is a game that’s legendary, and Delta is certainly the best possible way to experience it. That’s partly due to several quality of life changes that Konami made, which make it feel like a more modern Metal Gear Solid experience.

7. Hell is Us

Remi’s travels across Hadea and his search for his parents might not be the most cheerful of adventures, but this is a game whose systems work very well to reward curious players with lore drops and useful items. However, only the most observant players are going to get to see more of its world, as this one has a lot to discover but almost no way to track it all other than your own wits.

It’s nice to see a game that’s as opaque as this one, and slowly peeling back the layers of its world and the events that transpired in the past is harrowing yet satisfying to progress through.

8. Echoes of the End

Although Ryn and Abram’s adventure hasn’t managed to capture as much of the spotlight as Deep Silver might have hoped, it’s still a solid game with a story that has many memorable moments, along with mechanics that make for fast-paced, satisfying combat. There are many memorable moments to experience in your time with this one, both part of its main story and the ones you get to make along the way.

Its voice actors do really well to sell the material they’re working with, while the entire experience comes together reasonably well enough to make this one entertaining the first time you play through it.

9. Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii

Getting Goro to go on a swashbuckling adventure where he takes command of his own crew of pirates competing with a ship is every bit as fun as you’d imagine, and then some. It’s a great story that sets the stage for Ryu Gya Gotuku to bring an experience that is a great showcase of Like a Dragon’s popularity.

The combat is a treat, and finally having a jump button is a nice way of acknowledging player feedback. The story is quite a rollercoaster, while a plethora of optional activities via side content means this one is going to keep you occupied for many an entertaining hour.

10. Shadow Labyrinth

It was a delight to join Puck and Swordsman #8 on their adventure across a mysterious world that seems intent on hindering their journey at every turn. It’s a punishing world that can push you to the limits of your skills and tactical ability, but it’s all the more worth it as a result.

The level design is top-shelf, as are the enemies and bosses you find, making this one a game that’s so good you’re going to keep coming back for more. There’s also a bunch of tongue-in-cheek references to other successful Bandai Namco titles and franchises if you keep a sharp eye out.

11. Death Stranding 2: On The Beach

There’s a lot of action to be found across Mexico and Australia in this new adventure from Hideo Kojima, and a story that’s going to leave you gaping at what the current generation of games can achieve both visually and narratively. Everything that was good about the original Death Stranding is here, along with ambitious new additions that take the franchise forward in ways that must be seen to be believed.

It’s a game that will have you completely invested from the very moment it begins, and we’d probably leap at any excuse to start up a new playthrough just to enjoy as much of it as we can another time.

12. Ninja Gaiden 4

With enough of the franchise’s best features in it to make it a nod of respect to veteran players, while adding enough new content to make it welcoming to newcomers, Ninja Gaiden 4 has done well to bring the franchise back into relevance with style.

With Ryu taking on the Dark Dragon yet again, joined by a new protagonist who brings interesting new twists to the game’s combat, this long-awaited new addition to the franchise does a lot of things right, making it one of the year’s finest action titles whose main narrative can have you increasingly curious to know how things pan out.

13. Hollow Knight: Silksong

Silksong took the world by storm this year, and with good reason. Putting Hornet front and center of the story this time around allowed the game to take a new approach to its combat and traversal, while increasing its size and scope over the original Hollow Knight by a significant amount.

The result is a game that’s a near-perfect blend of exploration, traversal, combat, and story beats, which is just sublime to play despite survival being a challenging affair in its world.

14. Ghost of Yotei

The land of Ezo has turned out to be a great place for you to leap onto your horse and go out seeking adventure and any excuse to draw your weapons against deadly foes. Atsu’s story of revenge is certainly compelling, but it’s in the way you guide her towards rediscovering the home she left behind while making her a legend to be feared among the land’s villains that makes this one as endearing as it is.

Of course, its beautiful landscapes and brutal combat encounters make for action that’s probably going to be something we keep revisiting from time to time. This is a PlayStation exclusive that might even sell a few consoles this holiday season.

15. Dying Light: The Beast

Boy, was this one good! Kyle Crane’s latest tale might be darker and grittier than his past appearances, but that only serves to make this game more immersive as a result. The Beast is designed to balance exploring its excellent world against encounters with the Infected that could take nasty turns if you’re not smart about how you use your limited supplies.

The story is a perfect example of a Dying Light game, and franchise fans are quite happy with the cliffhanger it sets up. This is definitely a game that you can take on if you’re looking for some nail-biting action and a great story to frame it all.

While each of these titles has been special in its own right, we’re handed the challenge of picking one out of them all as a winner.

The winner of the best action-adventure game of 2025 is:

Ghost of Yotei

Atsu’s adventure is just so intricately crafted that wandering the lands of Ezo leads you to new things to engage with so organically that you could almost forget that there are numerous systems working behind the scenes to bring them to you. This one’s a masterpiece whose many systems click together in place to bring you an open-world experience like no other, while its combat is a deadly dance of blades that ends with only one of its practitioners standing around the devastation of those incapable of defeating the onryo.

And that’s a wrap on our list of the best action-adventure games of 2025. In the aftermath of a year that’s been this good, we can only grin with anticipation as we think of what’s to come in the next one!

2025 has been very kind to single-player games, and we have challenged ourselves to bring you the best ones among them despite how tough it’s been to pick favorites.

But here we are, and the nominees for the best single player game of 2025 are:

1. Metal Gear Solid: Delta Snake Eater

Konami’s remake of Naked Snake’s first mission and the story that shaped the rest of his life has been a solid blend of current-gen graphics, quality of life tweaks, and a perfect recreation of the original experience for those looking for it.

Of course, its attempt to bring the game to a new generation of players saw it make additions that did have minor flaws, even trivializing a few major fights, but for the most part, this is an experience worth checking out if you’re thinking about diving into Metal Gear Solid.

2. Silent Hill f

Hinako’s story might seem puzzling the first time you play through it, but the experience is more than enough to keep you going. Konami and NeoBards did well to bring out the former’s vision of a truly Japanese horror experience while managing to retain the Silent Hill franchise’s flavor.

With a solid combat system, and layer upon layer of psychological horror to peel back over subsequent playthroughs, Silent Hill f is a welcome return to the spotlight for the iconic horror franchise. It belongs here, and more than earns its place among this year’s greats.

3. Clair Obscur

Oh, Sandfall. The studio’s pilot project had us sold on its story thanks to a very poignant, hard-hitting prologue but kept us coming back through its gameplay loop. It blended a sense of discovery with the thrill of a combat system that was both satisfying to watch while being challenging to master.

With a voice cast that breathed a distinct personality to each of its memorable cast of characters, and a world that remains among the most unique ones we’ve visited over the years, we can’t get its best moments out of our heads but smile fondly at the journey it took to get there.

4. Dying Light: The Beast

Kyle Crane’s newfound powers and the formidable opponent he now found himself pitted against in the Castor Woods made this one an adventure that was Dying Light at its finest. With the Infected on the loose, Volatiles that were at their most vicious prowling the night, great combat and some innovative additions, The Beast was a fantastic entertainer.

It helped that the story and world were so well-blended together that exploring it all was a great way to soak in everything that the Castor Woods had to offer while constantly learning about what had happened while Kyle was away. This is a game that rewards diligent exploring, and does so with so much style that it was bound to be here.

5. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

This sequel to the original game built on everything that was good about it while expanding well enough to stand out on its own. A more expansive map, a light tone that brought wit, charm, and some delightfully droll humor into the mix, it was easy to get lost in it all, and a pleasure to do so.

Deliverance 2 is a game that comes along every once in a while, and leaves you craving for more of it once you’re done. This one can have you hooked sooner than you’d think.

6. Hollow Knight: Silksong

Another ambitious sequel that built upon its original game quite well, Silksong brought Hornet to the center stage for an action-packed, well-crafted game that took the gaming world by storm and overshadowed any competition unfortunate enough to share its release window.

That hype was well-earned, though, and this one was an almost sublime balance of challenge and reward, bringing a very immersive world filled with enemies to take on and platforming challenges to navigate. Simple yet stylish, this one definitely deserves credit for being a sequel that hits harder on every front.

7. Donkey Kong Bonanza

When the classic character made its way to the Switch 2’s lineup, we were obviously stoked to see if the game would be worth it. And wow, were we delighted to find that it was just so much fun to play.

From Bonanza’s visuals to its gameplay, this was an experience that controlled the chaos it encouraged its players to inflict just about enough to make embracing it all and just going along become an activity that had us constantly picking up the new handheld. This is Donkey Kong as it should be, and a fine take on the iconic character.

8. Death Stranding 2: On The Beach

Unlike Sam Porter in the early moments of the main campaign, we were more than happy to return to Death Stranding’s latest world, and what a world it is. Exploring Mexico and Australia in Kojima’s deliciously well-crafted take on his exploration of legacy was an experience that often has you staring slack-jawed at your screen.

As a single player game, this one can have you investing many hours tracking down every detail Kojima has squirreled away in its sprawling map.

9. Mafia: The Old Country

Going back to the roots in Sicily made for an experience that’s the best of Mafia with a layer of polish that made this a great story to witness. If you’re a fan of the franchise’s explosive set pieces and authentic takes on the periods its adventures are set in, this one is going to have you grinning.

It’s a solid game with a brilliant story, and the Sicilian countryside is a beautiful place to spend a few hours in any way.

10. Ghost of Yotei

As one of two solid takes on ancient Japan, Sucker Punch’s new addition to the Ghost franchise was a solid iteration of everything that made it great while adding flourishes that took the franchise in new directions.

It’s quite hard to stay focused on your quest for revenge when there are so many different things to do, and a whole frontier to engage with. Of course, smaller stories that explore some truly complex themes on war and conflict exist, and one of them is a masterpiece in horror. And of course, there’s homage to everything that put the studio on the map too.

Ghost of Yotei is a game where you play the main story missions in any given area last, and that is probably its biggest strength.

11. Hades 2

Melinoe’s journey through the Underworld and beyond is a lot of fun and a very fun story thanks to its punchy art style, interesting level design, and a roguelike gameplay loop that ties all of its systems together. With excellent graphics, this is a game that comes with a lot of charm. We’re not going to forget the enemies coming at us with rock music anytime soon, after all.

12. Assassin’s Creed Shadows

The Japanese chapter of the Assassin brotherhood has managed to stay among this year’s finest single-player titles thanks to Naoe’s unique brand of stealth, Yasuke’s natural penchant for chaotic combat, and a roadmap of content that has sustained interest in the game since its March 2025 release.

Thrown in a visually resplendent open world and a polished take on RPG mechanics and you have a game with so much to do and so many ways to do it that you might want to clear your calendars for a few days to just experience a significant portion of it.

13. DOOM: The Dark Ages

Although id Software took the Slayer back in time, the changes it brought to this one’s combat loop made this a very entertaining shooter. The Slayer’s latest entry was one that came with the usual bombastic action, memorable gun play, and action-packed mechanics. If you’re looking to kick back and take on hordes of enemies with a variety of cool weapons, look no further than The Dark Ages. The Slayer is ever at the ready, waiting to be unleashed on the hordes of enemies, after all..

14. The Elder Scrolls IV: Remastered

Among the most pleasant surprises we received this year was the chance to see Cyrodiil in a whole new avatar. This blast from the past is the original experience reworked into a current-gen entertainer that continues to stay relevant and a powerhouse in single player fun.

The nostalgia factor alone was enough to earn our goodwill, but this remaster does a lot of things right to make it all feel fresh, and is definitely worth checking out.

15. The First Berserker: Khazan

Khazan’s rage-fuelled adventure and his conflict with his rather unwelcome guest is a great game, giving you a unique art style that serves its action and discovery-oriented gameplay loop quite well. Of course, its brutal difficulty and deep combat system are the stars of the show but we found the story quite interesting too.

It was a great look at the early chapters of the Dungeons & Fighter universe and a title that had us losing sleep as we threw ourselves at the boss blocking our path to progress.

16. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond

Samus Aran’s adventure on Viewros is a great addition to 2025’s illustrious ranks, blending a solid setting with a very entertaining gameplay loop that could have you lost in its world. From its puzzles to the combat, this is a game at its finest, the 18 years between this one and its predecessor being a long wait but a worthy one.

We’re especially fond of how the newly introduced psychic powers constantly had us thinking about ways to use them creatively. For a single-player experience that does it all and does it well, this is a great choice.

17. Where Winds Meet

Everstone’s ambitious wuxia-based open world action RPG deserves a mention thanks to its outstanding take on ancient China. This is a game that truly sets its players free to explore and enjoy its world in any way that they’d like, bringing a degree of freedom that makes it very hard to put down.

If your natural curiosity leads you to investigate every inch of a sprawling map, you can’t do much better than Where Winds Meet. We’re going to be watching this one’s progress quite closely in the months to follow.

While each of these games did something special to stand out, there can only be one winner. And thankfully, that’s been the easiest part of this task.

The winner of 2025’s best single-player game is..

DEATH STRANDING 2: ON THE BEACH

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. Sam’s latest adventure raises the bar for the franchise, and open-worlds, in general while Kojima’s ability to weave his themes into the very threads of the worlds he develops continues to dazzle.

On the Beach stands out as a sequel and on its own, making for a game that constantly has you marvelling at the wonders it presents, while its visuals draw you in thanks to how realistic everything looks. The Decima engine really shows off its chops in this one, as does a studio that pulled out all the stops to give us a game that takes the crown for the year’s finest work with ease.

It’s now time to look forward to 2026, and see what the year has waiting in store for us.

We quite like worlds that set us loose right from the get go, sprinkling interesting distractions along the way to keep us exploring away until our eyes, or hands, or even our controllers demand some rest. And 2025 has blessed us with quite a few of those titles, with each experience bringing a very unique bunch of mechanics to keep things interesting.

With that being said, we have a few that are believed to be a cut above their peers. The nominees for the best open-world games of 2025 are:

1. Where Winds Meet

Everstone Studios has blended wuxia with an action RPG adventure whose sprawling lands and bustling cities are a stage for a very ambitious take on player agency and freedom. This is a world that actively encourages going off the beaten track, its systems being a reward on their own for diligent players.

But that’s not all. With the game actively including clever touches upon actual history and using that to blend in fantasy elements makes for an experience that’s a wuxia fever dream. Where Winds Meet deserves a place of honour among 2025’s best RPGs for its sheer scale, ambition, and the sense of freedom it gives you from the get-go.

2. Dying Light: The Beast

By making the Castor Woods feel like a character in Kyle’s latest adventure, this open world survival horror loop never fails to entertain. You never know what you might end up against as you leave the safety of your hideouts, while the night conceals terrors that can bring a very quick end to your strolls.

But it’s in how the world blends several activities and a well-written story together with some excellent parkour-based traversal and new powers for your character to make an experience that continues to call out to us long after we rolled the credits on it.

3. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

A worthy successor to the first title, Deliverance 2 builds on everything that was great in the first game while expanding on it in both scale and quality. Its story brings a lot of interesting twists to the tale, while the wit and charm of its characters and NPCs can be both endearing and amusing.

This is a world where exploration feels like a very entertaining trek through a world in which you can find both conflict and comedy in equal measures as you go where the roads take you on your quest to witness an end to Henry’s story.

4. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered

This one definitely was a surprise when it was shadow-dropped by its developers earlier in the year, but it certainly isn’t a surprise that it has made its way back into our hearts after the many years since its original release.

A brilliant visual overhaul aside, improved animations and a revamped enemy AI made the entire adventure feel quite immersive. That’s quite an advantage in an open world like Cyrodiil, where there’s just so much to tease out through careful exploration and countless battles. This is a nostalgia fix you shouldn’t miss out on, and a must try if you happened to have missed the original game.

5. Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Ancient Japan’s chapter of the Assassin’s finally made it to our hands, and Naoe and Yasuke didn’t disappoint. The Anvil Engine brought this excellent recreation of feudal Japan to life in a giant map that was both dazzling to see and riveting to explore.

With secrets to discover, targets to hunt down, fortresses to raid, and so much more, the changing seasons are a showcase of how this game continues to stand tall among 2025’s best RPGs, as resilient as the snow-capped structures it recreates so beautifully.

6. Death Stranding 2: On The Beach

Sam Porter’s second adventure was bound to be more ambitious than the first one, but On the Beach brings an astounding level of visual flair, engaging gameplay, and a vast world for you to work your magic on this time around.

The game’s opening hour was enough to showcase how Kojima Productions had managed to bring a sequel worthy of its predecessor in every way, while doing enough to stand out on its own as an open world title that’s unforgettable and melancholically haunting.

7. Elden Ring: Nightreign

While it can be easy to see open-world games as ones that have you gradually explore their maps and take things at a generally slower pace, FromSoftware’s roguelike debut put a timer on the exploration and gave you a set of moves and traversal methods that were built for efficient speed.

Making your way across a map before the Night begins to eat away at your life force demands strategy and skill, and taking on the many threats you find along the way with player-controlled Nightfarers at your side could lead to some truly memorable battles or some epic fails. Either way, this one’s a great option for a player who likes to pick up the pace.

8. Tokyo Xtreme Racer

Roaming the streets of Tokyo in your quest to become a street racing legend is a very entertaining part of this game’s racing experience. Challenging racers from rival gangs or just looking to make a mark on their own is never going to get old, and this is a title that is entertaining to both pro and casual racing fans.

This is definitely worth a shot if street racing in an open world is your thing, and it is sure to give you more than a few challenging tracks to take on and rivals to beat.

9. Ghost of Yotei

Atsu took over the reins from Jin Sakai in a sequel that has cemented the Ghost franchise as a powerhouse in PlayStation’s lineup of exclusives. This is a world in which serene beauty, deadly dangers, and riveting stories are waiting to be found, the wind at your back slowly guiding you to them.

Of course, there’s the entire quest for revenge and your blood feud to tend to, but they often take a back seat when an adorable little bird flits into view, urging you to follow it to potentially new discoveries. Ezo is a world that’s a treat to explore despite the many dangers you’re going to have to face down, weapons drawn and reflexes at the ready.

10. Monster Hunter Wilds

Among the more popular additions to the open world genre, this successor to Monster Hunter Worlds was quite an upgrade, adding new mechanics, systems, and massive biomes teeming with monsters to take on for its players.

The game pulled no punches with Wilds, and the effort has made the Forbidden Lands a game map that’s going to be as entertaining now as it was when we first began exploring it. And given the heavy competition in the genre, that’s an achievement worth having.

11. Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon

Retracing the legend of King Arthur in this darker take on the king’s story was an interesting time, with a frankly astounding number of quests that you can find in its open world. Dealing with the Red Death and the Wyrdness is often the catalyst for smaller, more nuanced tales that tell you more about the world that once was, while also giving emotional heft to the world that now exists.

It’s a map that takes you to places you cannot forget once you visit them, while the game’s other systems and story work well to have you forgetting the hours as you immerse yourself into the adventure.

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

With GSC finally bringing out the PS5 version of STALKER 2 and making great use of the console’s unique features, the experience that the studio set out to deliver is finally here. The Zone has everything you’d expect from a title in the iconic franchise, and exploring it is a gaming experience that remains unique among its peers.

This is a title that keeps you on your toes, its story and the grind for survival working well to make your character feel like the predator and the prey. This one is definitely worth checking out if you haven’t had the chance to experience a very unique flavor of mayhem.

13. Days Gone Remastered (PS5)

While the choice to remaster Days Gone might have raised a few eyebrows, this remaster is now the best way to experience the original title’s utter unpredictability and terrifying chases through uncharted territory with hordes of vicious zombies on your tail.

Deacon’s harrowing adventure is a great story and an even greater launchpad for an open-world experience that’s both chilling and engaging. It’s just you, your motorcycle, the open road, and of course, the zombies in a game that can stay with you long after you complete its story.

14. Borderlands 4

It was a joy to rejoin the ranks of the Vault Hunters after all this time and take on the Timekeeper in this addition to the Borderlands franchise. WIth laughs and a thrilling looter shooter making this one a very fun way to enjoy your gaming hours, this is an open world that can have you lost in its cel-shaded adventures.

It’s also a great option to get your buddies together for some cooperative play in a map that can have a lot of fun just waiting for you to discover.

15. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy – Enhanced Edition

If you’re wondering what the fuss about the STALKER franchise is all about, this one is a great way to experience the original games in all their glory and then some. With improvements to both visuals and performance on each of the three titles packed in, there’s a lot to like in this bundle, thanks to how the STALKER games are engaging enough to gain a following over the years.

These are worlds that you just cannot miss, thanks to how memorable they have managed to be despite the years that followed their release.

While each of these games brought a lot of fun and innovation to the table, we must pick a winner.

The winner of best open world game of 2025 is:

GHOST OF YOTEI

Atsu’s story and her trip across Ezo is simply too well-crafted to be ignored in favor of other games. This is an open world that engages with you just as much as you interact with it. It’s alive and humming, willing you to listen and follow its paths to your next hours of adventure. Mount Yotei and its surroundings have been a pleasure to explore, and Sucker Punch has nailed its take on the turbulent land.

Obviously, you’ll discover new weapons to help against the very worst that Castor Woods has to throw at you, but there are also Legend levels. Think of these as Prestige levels, unlocked after hitting level 15. Any XP earned will feed into Legend levels, which increase health and provide Legend Points to spend on, well, more health, Beast Mode and damage.

Best of all, playing on higher difficulties and New Game+ tiers provides more XP. But what’s risk without the reward? Progressing through the Legend Levels will unlock 22 new weapons, 12 gear pieces (making up two outfits) and new Legendary skins for your vehicles.

If that wasn’t enough, Update 1.4 introduces ray tracing, with Low to Ultra settings (Frame Generation is automatically enabled for the latter, though). There are also three new finishers for specific weapon types. A welcome surprise, to be sure.

A double XP is currently ongoing, so if you’re looking to jump back into Dying Light: The Beast, now is the best time. If you’re still on the fence, check out our review for more details.