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