“Following some consternation yesterday about neither the Switch nor Switch 2 versions of Metroid Prime 4 (Dec. 4) making Nintendo’s million-seller list for the period ending Dec 31, a Nintendo rep confirmed to me today that the combined sales of those 2 versions have in fact passed a million copies,” confirmed Totilo on BlueSky.

While the company hasn’t offered any more insights into its sales performance, having sold a million copies in less than a month is still quite an impressive feat for an entry in the Metroid series—a franchise largely considered to be quite niche among Nintendo’s other offerings despite critical acclaim.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was released in December, and is the first game in the Prime sub-series since 2007’s Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. The story revolves around Samus Aran once again being called on by the Galactic Federation to take on Space Pirates on planet Tanamaar in the Desolan System. However, things take a turn when Samus finds herself transported to planet Viewros and equipped with a new slate of psychic abilities.

Much like the previous Metroid Prime games, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond offers a mix of first-person shooter gameplay, puzzle-solving and exploration. Much of the story is also told through the environments, with Samus needing to use her scanner to get details on the planet’s backstory.

For more details about Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, check out our review. Also take a look at how its open-world hub design was influenced by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The title was developed by Retro Studios working alongside quite a few other companies. You can check out the full list of the 21 different studios here.

This reveal comes on the heels of Nintendo’s recent quarterly earnings report, where the company confirmed that it had sold over 17 million units of the Switch 2. The quarter itself accounted for 7.01 million sales of the console. The original Switch, on the other hand, has now become Nintendo’s best-selling console ever with over 155 million units sold and beating out the Nintendo DS’s 154.02 million lifetime sales. On the software side of things, the company had confirmed that it had sold 17.31 million units.

Nintendo is currently getting ready for its upcoming Direct, which will focus on third-party games. While not too many details have been revealed about the Partner Showcase, taking place at 6 AM PST, rumors have indicated that we might get to see Black Myth: Wukong announced for a Switch 2 release. Other games that might potentially make an appearance include FromSoftware’s The Duskbloods, and Capcom’s Monster Hunter Wilds.

Following some consternation yesterday about neither the Switch nor Switch 2 versions of Metroid Prime 4 (Dec. 4) making Nintendo's million-seller list for the period ending Dec 31, a Nintendo rep confirmed to me today that the combined sales of those 2 versions have in fact passed a million copies

— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo.bsky.social) 2026-02-04T20:52:40.254Z

Taking a closer look at software sales for the month of December, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 took the lead, with Battlefield 6 being ranked third. Other titles in the best-seller charts for the month are a mix of newer games like Donkey Kong Bananza and older titles like Grand Theft Auto 5, Minecraft and Red Dead Redemption 2.

While other console makers might have started struggling with console sales last year, Nintendo has been doing quite well with the release of the Switch 2. Piscatella had confirmed, the Switch 2 ended up being the best-selling console of the year in the US, with the country accounting for 4.4 million units. Along with this, the new console is also noted as selling faster than the original Switch from back in 2017.

As he noted, the Switch 2’s hardware sales single-handedly managed to offset industry-wide downward trends in console hardware sales. Sony’s PS5 ranked second for the period. The Switch 2 has also been described by Piscatella as being the “fastest selling video game console hardware platform” in history so far.

While things might be going well for Nintendo for the time being, research firm Niko Partners has predicted that the company will end up raising the price of the Switch 2 thanks to the worldwide memory shortages affecting manufacturing. The firm noted that, while the Switch 2 is priced competitively when compared to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo might have to bring its latest console in line with its competitors to maintain profitability.

In the meantime, Battlefield Studios has been working hard on creating and testing more content for the upcoming second season of Battlefield 6. While it hasn’t yet revealed too many details aside from its February 17 launch date, the developers provided a few hints about what kind of content we can expect when Season 2 of Battlefield 6 is kicked off.

Among the new content coming to the game is a brand new map, dubbed Contagion, that will also feature its own unique gameplay mechanics. No details have been provided about these mechanics, aside from vague hints about players needing to use equipment to interact with them, a soldier wearing a gas mask in the teaser trailer, and the fact that the map’s name implies some sort of contagious infection will be involved.

Battlefield 6 is available on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. For more details, check out our review from back when it first came out.

2025 Top 20 Best-Selling Premium Games – U.S. (Dollar Sales, Physical and Digital from digital data sharing publishers, excludes add-on content)

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2026-01-22T14:00:07.506Z

December 2025 Top 20 Best-Selling Premium Games – U.S. (Dollar Sales, Physical and Digital from digital data sharing publishers, excludes add-on content)

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2026-01-22T14:00:07.505Z

Though the title was announced back in 2017, it had likely been in development even before that. However, it garnered significant attention when Nintendo announced a reboot to development in 2019 with Retro Studios now in charge.

However, the developers noted that the success Nintendo saw with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild played a big role in defining the game structure of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. This was despite the Metroid franchise’s traditional structure, where players would gradually find new ways of exploring, opening the world up further. They pointed out that this structure would be counter-intuitive to having an open-world game like Breath of the Wild. Ultimately, the hub area was a compromise between Nintendo and the team to mix in both styles of level design.

“At the start of the project, perhaps due to the influence of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, we saw a lot of comments on the internet saying ‘we want to play an open-world Metroid’,” said the developers. “However, Metroid’s core element of ‘increasing the amount of explorable areas by unlocking powers’ is not very compatible with the ‘freedom to go anywhere from the beginning’ of open worlds. Thus, we thought to design a limited area that could be freely explored, and have that be a hub that could connect to other areas. Then we thought that if one could move around on the bike in a satisfying way in that area, it could be a segment that mitigates the tension from exploration, and paces the whole game.”

The fact that attitudes towards open-world games had changed since all the way back when Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was first announced was a major sticking point, however, because the title went through a long and arduous development cycle. Since development had already seen at least one reboot, “backtracking development again was out of the question, and we resolved to move forward with our original vision,” said the developers.

“During this time, shooting games and action games went through evolutions, with an increase in game speed in particular, but taking in those changes would have made it difficult to construct the tempo of an adventure game, so we actively chose not to take them into account. Therefore, I think this game is pretty much divorced from the changing of times.”

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is available on the Nintendo Switch and the Switch 2. For more details, check out our review.

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!

Of course, size isn’t everything. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and Like a Dragon have earned recognition for smaller worlds packed with plenty to do, leading to the term “semi-open world.” While it could mean many things – like several moderately sized areas that aren’t seamlessly connected – it has resulted in some contemporary classics.

So without further ado, let’s dive into the best semi-open world games from 2025.

Hell is Us

The poster child for non-handholdy games this year, Hell is Us scaled its environments based on the needs of its story. Senedra Forest was fairly straightforward but accommodated a mid-game dungeon/tower. The Acasa Marshes are one of the biggest areas, accommodating a town, underground tunnels, and various smaller mysteries to unravel. And then you have locations like Lake Cynon, which consist exclusively of a dungeon (with far more awaiting once you’ve progressed enough through the story). It’s an intriguing mix, and even if some areas are smaller than others, they each feel unique and packed with things to discover, including the many horrors of the civil war.

Monster Hunter Wilds

Capcom’s approach to the latest mainline Monster Hunter is odd for any number of reasons. You’re still relying on fast travel to go from one region to another, but you can now seamlessly transition from one hunt to another with no need to return to base. Camps are now of the pop-up variety, letting you place them anywhere. It’s all very dynamic, borrowing elements of open-world titles while remaining within the typical hunter gameplay loop. Post-launch updates have enhanced it further, adding tougher challenges and more rewards (like random Talismans). Master Rank is probably what’s going to elevate it beyond previous entries, but for now, The Forbidden Lands are worth losing a few dozen hours in.

Mafia: The Old Country

Hangar 13 made no bones about what it wanted to offer with Mafia: The Old Country – a linear, narrative-driven experience with some wiggle room for completing missions your own way. Which is a nice way of saying “Stealth or guns-blazing”, but it worked well regardless. Those who wanted to explore the extensive vistas of Sicily on horseback or poke around different shops to purchase new items could do so at their own leisure. Admittedly, it’s not the most feature-packed world, but the focus remains squarely on the story and characters, and for this price, we’re more than satisfied with the results.

Atomfall

“Quests” aren’t the impetus behind your character’s journey in Atomfall. Instead, it’s all about the leads, but to what end? Well, take your pick in this post-Windscale disaster landscape. What is the Voice that speaks through the mutated horrors? Who or what is Oberon, and why have you been tasked with killing it? What are factions like Protocol really after? That constant drive for answers is what carries much of the intrigue, and you never know when an unassuming discovery could lead to something far bigger (and more dangerous). Then again, you may opt to ditch it all in favor of wanton murder. The choice – and where it could lead – is yours.

Sniper Elite: Resistance

While the franchise has made many strides over the years, one of Sniper Elite’s strengths is delivering on its core formula: Hunkering down, killing targets with ultra-long-range shots without getting caught and exfiltrating. To that end, its maps are massive sandboxes that offer multiple objectives and approaches alongside collectibles. Should you decide to go even further, there are Kill List objectives that bestow additional rewards and the new Propaganda Mode, which has you controlling a freedom fighter and completing unique challenges. While there are many different ways to play, Resistance only further improves on what it’s good at.

Clair Obscur: Expedition

By now, we don’t really have to explain everything that Clair Obscur: Expedition does well. But how about the world design, complete with an old-school RPG-style world map? Where you can encounter Chromatic Nevrons and wipe the expedition just as easily as discover Gestral Beaches with wacky mini-games (including an Only Up-style platforming challenge). Maybe you’d fancy testing your skills in the tower, finding out what happened to Lune’s parents or discovering more doors that lead back to the Manor. The sheer amount of variety is noteworthy, but the fact that all of this is enjoyable to engage with while expanding on your party’s capabilities to a massively broken degree makes it that much sweeter.

The Outer Worlds 2

Where Starfield opted for hundreds upon hundreds of randomly generated planets, with a few hand-crafted locations, The Outer Worlds 2 narrows its focus on a handful. Fortunately, they go well in hand with the branching quests and decisions, where one wrong move could alienate you from both companions and entire factions. And while pursuing the story is recommended, there are so many side areas, optional quests and hidden approaches that reward you for exploration. Again, however, you could opt to just kill everyone. The Outer Worlds 2 even provides dedicated Perks for those who would rather shoot first and never ask questions later.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond

Leave it to Retro Studios to innovate on its established Prime formula, even if some of the results may not agree with long-time fans. Ignoring the new side characters (the less said about Myles, the better), Viewros is truly a unique location – one with multiple massive regions with convoluted layouts, puzzles, unique challenges, and, of course, boss fights. However, you’re also traversing the open desert on Vi-O-La, shooting down foes and harvesting resources. Despite initial apprehensions about the setting, it’s an intriguing mix that combines the genre’s best with something entirely new.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers

An underrated yet solid action RPG, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is also surprisingly packed in terms of content, and nowhere is that more obvious than in the world design. Developer Leenzee took significant inspiration from Dark Souls in terms of connecting key locations, and while it doesn’t boast the largest scale, a lot is waiting off the beaten path. Optional bosses, NPC quests, new weapons – the list goes on. Of course, there’s also a lot to discover about the Land of Shu, and its cursed history, if you’re so interested. It may not push the envelope when it comes to Souls-likes, but Wuchang’s world is certainly compelling in its own right.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii

An amnesiac Majima Goro, who decides to be a pirate, commandeering his own ship and waging war on the high seas, including against the likes of Raymond Law (played by none other than Samoa Joe). What more could you really want? Of course, the world design, a bright spot in almost every RGG Studio title, is the highlight here with numerous islands to explore. And when you’re tired of waging war and acquiring Briefcases in Madlantis, why not stop by Honolulu, which is carried over wholesale from Infinite Wealth, complete with numerous play spots and quests?

Mario Kart World

The best Mario Kart in the series? Your mileage (pun fully intended) may vary, but it is by far the most feature-packed. Free Roam in an open world with P-Switch challenges and cosmetics to gather; new moves like hopping and wall-riding for a higher skill ceiling; brand new tracks that seamlessly link together; and new modes are just some of the things long-time fans can look forward to, and it all works well.

Kirby Air Riders

21 playable characters and 22 machines, each with unique abilities and stats respectively; brand new tracks and remasters from the first game; the return of Top Ride and City Trial, with the latter turned into a faux battle royale mode of sorts; boss fights; and a full-fledged story mode. But even if you want to hop on for a simple race or two, it’s pure unfiltered fun – just like the original.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A

While there’s plenty of criticism to be had for its visuals, Game Freak’s latest mainline Pokémon title manages to capture that same monster-collecting magic. Lumiose City is full of unique sights, sounds and Pokémon to collect, and new elements like the Z-A Royale and Rogue Mega-Evolved Pokémon, alongside simple delights like traversing the rooftops, make it stand out.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond

Catacomb-like levels, progressively unlocking new abilities and backtracking to uncover new areas, that expectation of something incredible around every corner – even after all these years, Retro Studios still knows how to capture that feeling. The new additions in Beyond, like Vi-O-La, also seamlessly slot in, and wouldn’t you know it, even the NPC companions, despite concerns pre-launch, aren’t terrible. More importantly, experiencing it with such fidelity, complete with mouse controls, elevates it to a new whole level.

Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2

Technically not a native Switch 2 release, experiencing two of the greatest platformers of all time in 4K is hard to resist. The new Storybook Chapters offer a bit of new content, but really, it’s all about scouring the galaxies once more, reliving the wonder of each planet and the discoveries they hold.

Donkey Kong Bananza

It almost seemed impossible that Jumpman’s worst nightmare would get his own starring role once more, but Bananza delivers on that and then some. Excellent platforming and bombastic visuals were a given – this is from the Super Mario Odyssey team after all – but the destruction elements work so well in tandem, resulting in a 3D platformer that’s more than worthy to stand side by side with Mario’s greatest adventures.

Hades 2

Supergiant follows up one of the best rogue-likes in years with – surprise, surprise – an incredible sequel. Between the sheer amount of stuff to do, whether you’re venturing into the Underworld or ascending into Olympus, the challenging and unique boss fights, or the sheer depth that each new weapon offers, Hades 2 feels like a massive step forward in every single way.

Split Fiction

Hazelight’s latest is one of the best co-op experiences of the year (and many before it), and feels tailor-made for Switch 2. Even if it’s not the most fully-featured port, being able to GameShare with local players or engage in cross-play, alongside the Friend’s Pass (which means not having to buy an extra copy), is still great.

Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road

You wouldn’t believe this took more than nine years and multiple delays to release, but that seems to be a theme for 2025. Regardless, Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road isn’t the most realistic adaptation of football so much as the best adaptation of the anime, complete with MAPPA’s cutscenes and over 5,400 recruitable characters. It’s truly unlike anything else out there and a blast once you get into it.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Team Cherry’s long-awaited sequel is infuriating, frustrating, and challenging, but it’s also mesmerizing, addictive, and oh-so-good to control. The gameplay loop remains as finely crafted as ever, enhanced all the more with Hornet’s movement abilities, and the sheer attention to detail in areas, from their art to their secrets, will keep you coming back long after. It’s a tough bug to love, but Silksong is a stellar game.

Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition

The prospect of Cyberpunk 2077 running on the original Switch was laughable years ago, and yet, here we are more than five years later, experiencing it on the Switch 2 in all its glory. From the excellent base game to the stellar Phantom Liberty, this is still one of the best RPG experiences, and the addition of touch screen gestures for the UI and gyro aiming makes it feel that much better on the Switch 2. Also, shipping the entire package on an actual cart instead of a Game-Key Card? Chef’s kiss.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition

Truth be told, the new features – like the phone maps and QR codes for sharing Zonai machines – weren’t the most game-changing for Nintendo’s masterpiece. Nevertheless, it’s still a masterpiece, and being able to play it in 1440p/60 FPS with improved fidelity and faster loading is what we’ve always wanted. For that reason alone, it’s worth picking up.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land: Switch 2 Edition + Star Crossed World

For those who didn’t get their fill from Air Riders, the Switch 2 version of Kirby’s acclaimed 2022 adventure is well worth diving into. Star Crossed World offers a brand new storyline with new sections in old stages alongside new abilities, Mouthful modes and enemies to tussle with as you investigate a mysterious meteor. And of course, it’s a significant upgrade over the original’s already gorgeous visuals.

Cronos: The New Dawn

Bloober Team made a big impact with last year’s Silent Hill 2 remake, but its newest title channelled an altogether different survival horror vibe. A post-apocalyptic future with mutating monstrosities, time-traveling, a more enigmatic pace and protagonist, and more kept Cronos from feeling like a Dead Space rip-off. Even in handheld mode on the Switch 2, it’s a tense, terrifying ordeal.

Star Wars Outlaws

Ignored at launch, Massive Entertainment’s Star Wars scoundrel had a quiet but notable redemption this year, aided by its Switch 2 port. How the development team (in collaboration with Red Lynx) managed to deliver such great performance and ray tracing while retaining image quality, even with DLSS, is fascinating to behold. The fact that the game itself still looks so gorgeous while playing better than ever also doesn’t hurt.

And the Best Switch 2 title of 2025 goes to…

Donkey Kong Bananza

Did you really expect anything else, especially when a Donkey Kong game lets you rip chunks out of the environment to toss at enemies or surf on them with utter abandon? Bananza is more than just the Mario Odyssey formula, but with more destruction and a different protagonist. It’s a masterclass in pacing, deftly balancing the collect-a-thon aspects and real-time destruction with superb level design. Donkey Kong controls like a dream; the new Bananza Powers are as ridiculous as they are fun; and there isn’t an ounce of filler or unnecessary padding. For that reason, and many more that we could spend all day listing, it’s our pick for the best Switch 2 game of 2025.

The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered

Cyrodiil may not be the largest world in The Elder Scrolls series to date, but it still holds its own, especially in Virtuos’s remaster. The side quests were already acclaimed for their variety and quirkiness – from sleeping in an inn on a boat and waking up to find it hijacked to the missing painter. But it’s a joy to explore the world and take in your surroundings, made even better with locations like The Shivering Isles.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Say what you will about Assassin’s Creed Shadows – and everyone’s had their fair share to say this year – the scale is simply phenomenal. You’ll scour the remains of Harima with its many corpses, witness gorgeous castles like Azuchi, bask in the almost hypnotic Omi Lake, and so much more. A lot of effort has gone into accurately capturing their details – the only disappointment is that there won’t be a Tourism Mode like previous titles.

Atomfall

Rebellion’s take on a post-nuclear disaster world, inspired by the actual English countryside, is one that I still find endearing, despite other flaws. The free-form nature of exploration, as you can go almost anywhere, be it the abandoned laboratories of BARD or different settlements, including the highly strung Wyndham Village. Whether it’s locating clues to venture into hidden bunkers or discovering mutant plants, the world feels dense and lived-in.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond

Did anyone expect that Metroid Prime 4 would go, ahem, beyond with its scale when it was announced all those years ago? Viewros isn’t just a cacophony of jungles with ravenous beasts or facilities in volcanic caverns. It’s also a vast series of deserts, navigated by the sleek new bike, Vi-O-La, which allows for some light shoot ’em up action to break up the exploration and scanning.

Monster Hunter Wilds

As annoying as its performance, end-game, and other woes have been, I will admit: There’s something about the Forbidden Lands in Monster Hunter Wilds. Maybe it’s the weather and other conditions shifting in real-time, causing other monsters and resources to appear, or their design, whether it’s the spiralling elevations of Oilwell Basin or the sheer openness of the Windward Plains. Even if you’re mostly dashing through on your mount, stopping and observing nature as a whole yields some impressive discoveries.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Coming off of one of the longest side-scrollers ever (not including the DLC), it’s unsurprising that Silksong should be just as massive. Each location has a unique hook, enemies, bosses, and surprises, from the prison break without equipment to the mechanically beautiful intricacies of the Clockwork Core. But the fact that Team Cherry could pack so much in that’s also completely missable – including an entire third Act – is simply bonkers.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii

Featuring the entirety of Honolulu from Infinite Wealth is already an insane flex when it comes to the sheer size of Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. But what’s a high seas adventure without an ocean and multiple islands to traverse, complete with treasure hunting, crew recruitment and naval combat? For what’s essentially a non-mainline entry, the sheer scale and coverage are pretty insane, but still manageable enough to clear in under 50 hours.

Clair Obscur

To say that Sandfall Interactive’s environments are a tour de force in aesthetic beauty and fidelity would be an understatement. Fields of giant swords, massive landscapes of battles past, the stadium full of Nevron dancers – it’s an endless stream of incredible levels, some feeling compact while others are absolutely massive. And that’s not even accounting for the secret spots where some of the most devious challenges await.

Ghost of Yōtei

Ezo is a fascinating region in Sucker Punch’s long-awaited follow-up to Ghost of Tsushima. With no bearings or directions, it’s vastly larger than your map indicates. Even as the flame-charred remains of Ishikari Plains, the frozen wilds of Tokachi Range, and the battered Oshima Coast become familiar, it never loses its incredible sense of discovery. From the peak of Mount Yōtei to the reaches of Saito’s fortress, its massive size is matched by its sheer range of activities.

Where Winds Meet

We’ve already covered just how massive the Jianzhu can be, promising over 100 hours of solo content alone, but it bears repeating, especially for a free-to-play experience. There are over 20 regions, each uniquely crafted to offer a distinct atmosphere and numerous points of interest. Then there’s Kaifeng City, which packs in thousands of NPCs and various activities, almost feeling like it could have been the sole location in a smaller game. Even with horses and practically soaring through the skies, the Jianzhu is simply awe-inspiring.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2

Taking it as a challenge to dwarf the original, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 just packs in so much more throughout. That includes the landscape, which provides a wider range of gorgeous sights, such as Kuttenberg, the biggest city yet with traders, armorers, combat arenas, and various associated quests. But even those who wish to embrace the great outdoors will encounter more than their fair share of adventure.

The Outer Worlds 2

The fact that you can spend over a dozen hours on the starting planet should give you enough hints about the overall size of The Outer Worlds 2. From there on, you’ll venture to the lush greenlands of Eden, the desert reaches of Dorado, the icy of the Cloister and more, including the ACS Undisputed Claim, which is a massive trading hotspot. Even if many of these climates will seem familiar, they’re packed with unexpected discoveries (and threats).

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach

Compared to its predecessor, Death Stranding 2 mostly unfolds across two locations. One look at Mexico, the first, and you’re just absolutely dwarfed by the sheer size and scale, but then you reach Australia, and it’s even bigger. Perhaps even more impressive – besides all the requests, facilities, and whatnot – is how varied the flora and fauna are throughout. Even the mountain ranges are significantly more complex than anything from the first game. The fact that you can explore and surmount these in different ways makes them all the more endearing.

Mario Kart World

No, this isn’t Forza Horizon levels of quality, but the “world” of Mario Kart World is pretty cool. Navigating the freeways between races, taking advantage of hops and wall rides while avoiding traffic, can be fun. The drifting, power-ups and utter madness of each race are still the appeal, but if you’re looking to unwind, maybe unlock new outfits or complete with P Switch challenges, free roam is a near-boundless playground.

Borderlands 4

It’s funny to look back and see just how Gearbox undersold the sheer openness of Kairos. Aside from a few instance boss fight locations, you can seamlessly travel from the Fadefields to Carcadia Burn and Terminus Range without any loading screens. The sheer variety of activities, from enemy camps and towers to capture to Drill Sites, Order Bunkers and Auger Mines, is also impressive. For me, it’s the verticality, which excellently leverages the new traversal mechanics, that really shines.

The cut dialogue doesn’t really include any plot critical. Rather, they largely lean on the jokier side of things, with characters discussing roast beasts, and how much VUE-995 can bench press. These dialogues were likely cut out of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond because they didn’t quite fit the overall tone of the game. All in all, as caught by VideoGamesChronicle, the cut dialogue amounts to around 30 minutes in length.

It is worth noting that the Metroid Prime series has traditionally been quite well-regarded thanks in large part to its focus on exploration, and the isolation that a player can often feel in the shoes of protagonist Samus Aran as they uncover the deep plot threads in the games. While the first three titles have all been critically acclaimed, the most recent entry has the lowest aggregated Metacritic score of the series so far.

Our own review for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, which you can check out here, also noted the chatter between NPCs as being a major negative point of the game. In our review, we wrote about understanding the usefulness of helping characters that might be stuck on some puzzles. However, the lack of any way to disable the NPC chatter was a major issue, especially since this chatter has the tendency to minimise the themes of isolation and general atmosphere of the game.

The development of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond has also been a rather gargantuan undertaking if its credits list is anything to go by. As discovered when the title came out earlier this month, the credits list 21 different studios for their work on the game, including primary developer Retro Studios. Among the teams credited in the game are Virtuos, Territory Studio, Waterproof, Red Hot CG, and AMC Studios.

The long list of studios having worked on the game should come as no surprise, since Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was first officially unveiled all the way back in 2017. At the time, rather than traditional franchise developer Retro Studios, the title was noted as being developed by Bandai Namco Studios based out of Japan and Singapore. The title subsequently changed hands since then, with development having been restarted under Retro Studios back in 2019.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond takes Samus Aran on a brand new adventure on the planet Viewros, where they must fight for survival against a number of enemies, including rival bounty hunter Sylux. The first-person gameplay focuses on a mix of action, platforming, puzzle-solving, and exploration, and Samus can once more scan the environment around her to discover more of the story as the game progresses. The title is available on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2.

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.

There was, of course, always that possibility – this is a game that was announced in 2017, rebooted development entirely in 2019, swapping out the original developers for the custodians of the original trilogy Retro Studios, and then spent an additional six years in development, across a whole pandemic and a generational transition. The development was so prolonged and protracted, it’s no shock it would reflect in the final product.

And it does reflect in the final product. Metroid Prime 4 is almost baffling, because it simultaneously feels like it is too slavishly adhering to the format and template of the original game, without taking into account the more than two decades of game design evolution and development that have followed since, while also feeling like it’s not doing enough to be like Metroid Prime. It feels too much like Metroid Prime and not enough like Metroid Prime in all the wrong places, and the end result is a game that can feel frustratingly held back.

"Retro Studios made the absolutely correct decision to prioritize 60fps gameplay for this game even on the Switch as a baseline, which then allowed them more overhead to push things further on the Switch 2."

Which feels particularly galling, because to be honest, there is a lot that this game does right. More than anything else, this game is the tech showcase that Nintendo players may have been looking for. It’s a beautiful, gorgeous game, thanks to Retro’s typical smart blend of leveraging the tech available to them with art and stylization. On the Switch 2, which is where I played, this game runs at 4K and 60fps (which honestly feels shocking), or 1080p and a blistering 120 fps.

That it can achieve this is, of course, down to the fact that at its core, this game is a game made for the original Switch. Retro Studios made the absolutely correct decision to prioritize 60fps gameplay for this game even on the Switch as a baseline, which then allowed them more overhead to push things further on the Switch 2. The game’s Switch roots can often be visible if you squint – the geometry in particular can be extremely simplistic, and some areas of the game, such as the by-now infamous desert hub world, can look jarringly sparse and ugly compared to the rest of the game.

But on the whole, the game’s great art style does wonders to cover for any technical weaknesses the game may have. This should come as no surprise to anyone at all – this is what Metroid Prime has always been known for, and Prime 4 Beyond continues that legacy. It also doubles down on all the great embellishments with the presentation and immersion that these types of games are known for – charge up your arm cannon in a darkened room and release fire, and the flash of light causes Samus’ face to reflect in her visor.

Raindrops slowly trickle down her visor, and her cannon. Steam fogs up her vision. In every way possible, Metroid Prime 4 places you firmly in Samus’ power suit and behind her visor, truly immersing you in the setting and in her character.

"The problem, like I said, comes down to how the game feels the rest of the times. Before I talk about that, I want to talk about the first of the game’s major problems, the level design."

Another area where the game deserves credit is the control options it offers. You get dual analog, gyro assist, and the new signature control scheme offered by this game, joycon mouse controls. The Dual analog and gyro assist work pretty much identically to how they did in 2023’s Metroid Prime Remastered, which is to say, both are excellent and have great game feel. As for the mouse controls, they are sublime. Their implementation is completely seamless, because at any point while playing the game, you can choose to turn one of your joycons sideways, and the game automatically switches to mouse controls.

These mouse controls are great, and probably the best showcase for the otherwise neglected feature the Switch 2 has had since its launch earlier this year. They also allow for the gameplay to feel a lot faster and more dynamic than it otherwise does, because you are able to move, strafe, and aim a lot more freely and spontaneously than you are otherwise.

The problem, like I said, comes down to how the game feels the rest of the times. Before I talk about that, I want to talk about the first of the game’s major problems – the level design. The design is largely streamlined and simplified, mostly linear and funnelling you forward through its levels and environments, without the kind of sprawl and maze like traversal you would find in the original Metroid Prime.

A part of the issue here is the game’s structure. Beyond is structured like an old Zelda game, with a central hub area and multiple biomes you can enter from it, completing their central “dungeon” to gather an item for progress. This, of course, prevents the game from having the kind of global sprawl and design that Metroid Prime had. However, even with this style of design, Beyond could have done a lot better – Prime 2: Echoes, for example, also similarly broke down into three independent areas, the difference being that the design of each of those areas was significantly better than most, if not all, of the regions within Beyond.

I honestly don’t begrudge Retro the decision to make the game with this structure – it is what helps them keep things manageable for players who may be new or daunted by the prospect of a game with backtracking – but I would have liked them to do a much better job with it than they did.

The level design here is not bad. It’s fine. It’s good a lot of the times. But it rarely, if ever, becomes more than that. You can even be playing through the game and enjoying a lot of it, but no part of it sticks with you like the Phendrana Drifts in the original Metroid Prime.

Another problem I often have with the game is its insistence on companions and NPC chatter. Now, to be honest, this issue isn’t as prevalent as I had feared going into the game – you usually get a chattering companion for a small section of an area once you enter it and rescue them, and after that they occasionally chime in to tell you what should be doing. But to me, the problem is that any prevalence of this problem is too much.  Prime in particular, is about isolation and atmosphere, which are both qualities that take a backseat when you have an NPC character telling you how to solve a puzzle, or that there is a crack in the wall you should be examining, or that you just walked by a door with something interesting.

"Prime 4 is not that bad, but the presence of this at all is a problem."

This is the exact thing modern Sony games are criticized for NPC characters telling you what to do the second you entered a new room or encounter, without even giving you the chance to look around and figure things out for yourself. Prime 4 is not that bad, but the presence of this at all is a problem.

I understand considerations around helping players who may feel stuck, so I don’t really take any issue with them deciding to implement the feature, but my complaint is the same as it was for any other game that did this – at least let me turn this off, or, if nothing else, give me the option to not engage with NPC chatter, so I can just try and figure things out myself, and fall back on them for hints should I need those. Naughty Dog solved this problem more than a decade ago with Uncharted and The Last of Us. It boggles the mind that other studios consistently miss the boat on this.

One thing about the game that I think does deserve credit is the sound design and soundtrack. This, again, is not a surprise – Prime  games, more often than not, have incredible music, including ambient soundtracks, and that remains true in this game as well.

The sound design, as well, is fantastic, and contributes so much to the incredible sense of immersion. The audiovisual presentation aspects of this game pull their weight so well when it comes to delivering on a next generation realization of Metroid Prime… it’s honestly a shame to see the actual design decisions made with the title not do their part as well.

"After nearly 20 years since the last Prime game, a lot has happened in the world of game design, but Prime 4 barely seems to acknowledge that."

Because, yeah, ultimately, there is so much the game does do well that it is, frustratingly, not a total write off. There’s a lot Prime 4 does that is great, which makes it that much more frustrating that there is so much more it completely drops the ball on.

After nearly 20 years since the last Prime game, a lot has happened in the world of game design, but Prime 4 barely seems to acknowledge that. Even that would have been okay with me – just more Metroid Prime would be great! I love Metroid Prime, I would gladly take more of it. But it has to be good, and Prime 4 very often misses the mark, at least when it comes to things that matter most, such as the level design and traversal.

My hope is that this game is what it is due to the unique circumstances of its development. Hopefully, Retro will be allowed to put out a follow up, and hopefully, that follow up will be a lot less confused and conflicted, and a lot more cohesive with its overall vision and design. Until then, Prime 4 is what we have – the worst of the four mainline Prime games.

This game was reviewed on the Nintendo Switch 2.