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Both the nature of IGN’s PC gaming team and contributors, thanks to improvements in graphics cards and gaming displays, and the PC gaming environment as a whole have changed in recent years. Therefore, our list of the best recent PC games looks very different from our lists from previous years, except for a few true classics.
The Best Video Games for PC
Half-Life: Alyx
Valve’s long-awaited return to the Half-Life series, after 13 years, finally arrived with the release of the first game in the series in over a decade. In the same way that the original Half-Life proved that you could tell a gripping story in a first-person game without removing control of the camera, and Half-Life 2 pioneered physics-based puzzles and combat, Half-Life: Alyx set a new standard for polish in virtual reality shooters and is an unforgettable experience.
It’s so good that, if you haven’t already, you should buy a virtual reality headset for your computer (such as the $300 Meta Quest 2, which uses Air Link to connect wirelessly to your computer).
The complete campaign of Alyx is a spectacular and terrifying combat against aliens and zombies, where even reloading your weapon becomes a desperate life-or-death struggle as head crabs jump toward your actual face.
Even after more than a year, no other virtual reality shooting game has come close to matching Valve’s attention to detail. It features clever 3D puzzles and terrific, often humorous, performances from its actors to break up the action. It concludes with a fantastic climax that almost makes the decade-plus wait for Half-Life 3’s release worthwhile.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Although lengthy, in-depth RPGs are common on PC, few games have presented as much sophisticated content as The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Its vast sandbox open-world regions are impressive in size and detail, with plenty of challenging enemies to defeat, intriguing puzzles to unravel, and compelling backstories to uncover.
It also has one of the best voice casts assembled for a video game, fantastic original music, and stunning visuals that are technically brilliant and artistically impressive in equal measure.
XCOM 2
The amazing, high-stakes tactical action of XCOM: Enemy Unknown is expanded upon in XCOM 2, and the excellent War of the Chosen add-on only improves upon the base game. The impending doom of your individualized army hangs in the balance with the same weight as transforming from a technological underdog to a lethal military machine.
However, it boldly recasts XCOM as a guerrilla army trying to liberate the world from alien occupation, which makes the already grim situation seem even more so. This expanded-upon sequel has new and more potent army classes, equipment, and aliens and heavily emphasizes replayability.
In tactical missions, procedurally created landscapes prevent you from falling into a rut. At the same time, random events frequently shake up your build and research orders on the strategic map, and there are tons of mods to play around with.
Disco Elysium
Disco Elysium updated the classic CRPG formula to make it feel fresh and exciting. It brings D&D’s dice rolls and in-depth dialogue possibilities to a more unusual noir-detective environment. It introduces fresh methods to play, such as arguing against 24 parts of your brain (each representing a different ability or trait).
You play a homeless detective who is forced into a situation where you must solve a murder. Still, as with all great stories, the real reward is in the journey itself, and this one has some of the best writing ever seen in a video game to back up its ludicrously detailed world and cast of characters. Disco Elysium is a unique PC gaming experience, unlike anything you’ve played before or after.
Elden Ring
Elden Ring has become even more well-known in the short time since its debut, which is mind-boggling when one considers that it was already widely regarded as one of the best-reviewed games ever upon its initial release. It’s well-deserved, as Elden Ring is an unprecedented success in the open-world game genre. It became highly suggested in most Australia casino reviews.
Every corner of its large terrain has a new and exciting adventure, with unforgettable encounters, lucrative rewards, and intimidating boss confrontations. The PC version’s continued performance issues are the only factor keeping it from higher placement.
Crusader Kings 3
The human stories that emerge from the clash of great characters make historical strategy games worth playing, despite the games’ reputation for mind-boggling complexity. Whether through overwhelming military force, the diplomacy of a well-placed betrothal, or the end of your foes with a cloak-and-dagger scheme, Crusader Kings 3 allows you various ways to tell those stories.
CK3 also makes these complicated systems as accessible as they’ve ever been, thanks to its innovative nested tooltip system, which allows even strategy game novices to appreciate the game’s depth. The most recent DLC, Royal Court, increases the game’s level of detail by creating a setting where the monarch or queen can look each of their followers in the eye, delivering personal judgments and kingdom-wide edicts.
The expansion also implements a reworked culture system that can be felt throughout the game, providing more options for making your empire feel distinct, along with the associated benefits and drawbacks.
Hollow Knight
Hollow Knight is right up there when it comes to newer Metroidvania games. While many may be put off by Hollow Knight’s harsh introduction to the kingdom of Hallownest, the game quickly becomes impossible to put down once its hooks have sunk in.
In whichever direction you explore in its vast caves, you’ll encounter intriguing bosses to battle and useful power-ups to boost your stats. Even though Hollow Knight was a huge hit when it was released in early 2017, its popularity has continued to grow.
The game’s developer, Team Cherry, has published several free upgrades that add new, increasingly challenging regions and bosses. Hallownest is a world worth exploring, whether your goal is merely to watch the credits roll, discover the genuine ending, or go beyond.
Outer Wilds
Everything stops and begins every 22 minutes again. You wake up to see a mysterious object in space shatter again, and sands flying between twin planets return to their proper locations. In Outer Wilds, you must repeatedly endure the same 22 minutes until you can figure out why you’re stuck in the time loop by investigating ancient ruins on different planets.
In terms of video game exploration and discovery, this beautiful and touching space journey is among the best. In Outer Wilds, you’re free to explore the galaxy at large or stick around Earth to observe the local goings-on. All your actions and advancements are recorded in your ship’s log, indicating whether there is more to explore in a given area in case you get lost or need a hint.
Time is the one thing that can be said to limit your curiosity, and even that may be used to your advantage. The puzzles in the brief extension are just as entertaining as those in the main Outer Wilds campaign, but the ominous atmosphere in Echoes of the Eye makes solving each piece of the enigma that much more satisfying.
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