Action-adventure games are among the most popular and widely beloved in the entire gaming world. Their influence is undeniable, and there are countless smash hits all within a single space, ranging from realistic franchises charting the journey of a single hero to individual titles redefining how video game worlds are made.
It is hard to narrow down the best of the best action-adventure games, as there are simply too many titles to mention when discussing the genre. It doesn’t matter if someone likes shooters, puzzles, Soulslikes, or something else entirely, there will be an action-adventure game to suit their tastes and one that will potentially become their new favorite game.
God Of War: Ragnarök
Ending An Arc In Cinematic Fashion
Ragnarök is easily the best God of War game ever made, and even fans of the originals can look past the nostalgia and see that this is the definitive demi-god experience. Players once again step into the shoes of Kratos, with Atreus at their side, journeying across the Nordic lands to prevent the destruction of the Nine Realms.
The cutscenes look better than ever, and the combat has a visceral nature that is borderline unmatched with other modern titles, helping it stand above the other games in the series and the crowd of other melee action games. Everything from the story to the gameplay feels polished and refined, allowing the Norse mythology saga to close with a bang while keeping the series open for the future.
Batman: Arkham Asylum
The Darkest Of Knights
Batman: Arkham Asylum is the Batman game, and it represents not only an achievement in game design, but also the start of one of the best trilogies in gaming. It’s gritty and grim, giving players all the tools they need to truly become the caped anti-hero, and it never feels like the game is holding back in terms of gameplay and the themes of the story.
The satisfaction that comes from fighting iconic villains like Scarecrow with nothing more than some handy tools and a few good punches is hard to top. Mechanically, Arkham Asylum was wildly ahead of its time. Players have so many options when it comes to approaching each encounter and traversing between areas that it allows them to be fully immersed in a comic book world full of pain and evil.
Shadow Of The Colossus
Unmatched Levels Of Beauty
Shadow of the Colossus is haunting, gorgeous, strange, and just about every other descriptive word in the dictionary except for “crowded,” cornering a very specific niche in the adventure genre that is yet to be replicated two decades on. Players awaken and are tasked with slaying 16 colossi, each with their own attacks and challenges that players can only learn by fighting them head-on.
What makes the game so engaging is how the world manages to be so empty yet utterly captivating at the same time. The spaces in between points of interest never feel boring; instead, players will feel drawn to each enemy by the desire to see more of this mysterious world that contains more questions than answers.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Perfecting The Deflection Mechanic
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is the result of over a decade of Soulslike adventures, and it’s the closest FromSoftware has come to making a perfect game. The world-building is nothing short of a marvel. In typical FromSoft fashion, things are kept intentionally ambiguous aside from slightly helpful bits of dialogue, yet they narrative is still engaging enough for players to develop a hunger for finding out more about the world and the characters within it.
Where Sekiro really shines is in its combat. Deflection mechanics have been around for many years, but this game sets a new standard for how action games should approach them. The satisfaction that comes from failing countless times and then finally mastering the art of blocking is absurd, and the challenges players face are among the hardest in gaming, requiring patience, precision, and a bit of luck along the way.
The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
A Truly Generational Adventure
Breath of the Wild is the Zelda game that surpasses nearly every other entry in the franchise by a country mile, delivering a huge open landscape for players to explore and fully immerse themselves in. Hyrule has never looked so good, and the game’s art style makes every moment look like a gorgeous painting, all while keeping the signature look of the series at heart.
Where Breath of the Wild really takes off is with its emphasis on experimentation. Players are really pushed to use all the tools at their disposal to traverse the world and take on the various threats within it. The reduced levels of direction encourage a more natural exploration approach, making players feel like true explorers in an uncharted world and allowing each discovery to feel just as special as the last.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Setting A Standard For Character-Driven Adventures
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves stands as one of the best first-party PlayStation games of all time, but it’s also a timeless action-adventure game that remains impressive to this day. Nathan Drake is back at the helm, journeying from the jungles of Borneo to the mountains of the Himalayas, all wrapped within ambitious cinematic sequences that rival blockbuster movies.
The draw of Uncharted 2 comes from how effectively it makes the player feel like they are part of the action. There is far less waiting and around to receive the story; instead, players are thrown head-first into non-stop action sequences that are never rushed or out of place within the narrative.
Okami
Artsy And Challenging At The Same Time
Okami is a beautiful and colorful adventure that sees players assuming the role of Amaterasu, a sun goddess in the form of a wolf on a journey to restore life and order to a land plagued by blight. The world is quite literally repainted piece by piece, while every moment of combat and puzzle solved feels like a step towards fixing the broken environment.
From a gameplay standpoint, Okami is incredibly unique, with a sense of fluidity that can only be achieved thanks to its painterly aesthetic. By the end, players will feel rejuvenated with a sense of completion, yet sad that the calming and rewarding adventure has come to a close.
Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening
Blades, Guns, Style, And More
Devil May Cry 3 is an adrenaline-fueled adventure that gives players constant action from the moment the game begins. Dante is once again fighting his way through demonic forces with more flair and fury than any mortal human could manage, allowing players to fully take on the persona of the wise-cracking, unstoppable warrior.
The combat feels so crisp and engaging, with every action carrying a huge amount of weight and each segment demanding a high degree of skill from even veterans of the franchise. What ties the fighting together is the connected feel of the world that encourages players to explore every corner in detail, and the progression between areas feels very reminiscent of classic adventure games, where new paths are unlocked over time through puzzles and riddles rather than just brute force.
