Credit: FromSoftware
11. X-COM 2: War of the Chosen
Credit: Firaxis X-COM 2 sees you lead an insurrection against an alien occupation in a world where you failed in your past life as UFO goalie. War of the Chosen only escalates the action, introducing a quartet of powerful adversaries who can threaten to throw even the most routine engagements off the rails.
If Enemy Unknown breathed new life into a classic, X-COM 2 and its expansion, War of the Chosen, pushes that formula to new and exciting extremes.
10. Grow: Song of the Evertree
Credit: Prideful Sloth It's true that this game developed by Australian-based Prideful Sloth (pardon the pun) grows on you. In Grow, you have to bring a dilapidated world back to life by doing things that please a giant sentient tree - like planting, watering, weeding and singing to your plants. We know that sounds a little strange, but the concept makes for a fun game with plenty of sandbox gameplay elements to keep you busy for many hours. It's also visually stunning in a relaxing way.
9. Green Hell
Credit: Creepy Jar If you’ve ever wondered how hard it would be to survive for 24 hours in the Amazon rainforest, then this is a must-play. Green Hell places you there without any food or equipment and no help from the outside world. To survive, you will need to learn actual survival techniques to build shelter, make tools and craft weapons to hunt and defend yourself.
Green Hell is a challenging game; the jungle will constantly send problems your way, including wild animals, tropical sicknesses and bad weather. But, the graphics are impressive and the gameplay is highly enjoyable.
8. Starcraft 2
Credit: Blizzard While the fervor around esports predated and eventually outlasted Starcraft 2, it can’t be underestimated how much of an impact this particular game’s competitive community had on what was to come after it.
Countless streamers, casters, tournament organisers, analysts and players were brought together by the gravity of Blizzard’s long overdue space opera sequel. Rolled out as a trilogy over a period of five years, the consolidated Starcraft 2 experience includes three expansive story-driven campaigns (of varying quality but consistent variety), a rich and strategic multiplayer component and a powerful custom mapmaking toolkit.
7. Gloria Victis
Credit: Black Eye Games There have been lots of MMORPGs that feature territorial control but none more high stakes than Gloria Victis. Set in a medieval world, you can play against non-player characters to progress your skills or join in the open world PVP combat to fight enemies, raid bases or lay siege to castles.
PVP battles for territorial control can be epic, involving hundreds of people and you will easily develop a sense of camaraderie with players from your selected nation. It also features an advanced crafting system and player-driven economy. You can loot and be looted too, which can be both fun and also devastating.
6. They Are Billions
Credit: Numantian Hold off the zombie swarms in this very addictive real-time strategy by Numantian Games. Set in a post-apocalyptic, steampunk world, you must build defences in a last-ditch effort to stop billions of infected trying to annihilate your colony.
We rate the 48 single-player missions very highly. The graphics and sound effects are of the highest calibre and make for entirely engrossing gameplay. There are also 90 technologies to unlock as you evolve your colonies, which appeals to us technology buffs. It’s not easy, but we’ve never felt so proud unlocking Steam rewards as we have with this game.
5. Valheim
Credit: Iron Gate Studio Multiplayer is where this Viking-themed game really shines, offering players the chance to team up with 10 others to build epic bases, battle all manner of beasts and share a strong cup of Viking mead.
The game is set in a low-fantasy Viking purgatory and we love the simple but charming graphics. Exploring the range of "biome" environments reveals plenty to like about the game. Bees will sting you if you get too close and trees can squash you if you aren’t standing on the right side of them when they fall. Building is reminiscent of games like The Forest, with so many options to choose from, you will undoubtedly spend hours doing it.
4. The Ascent
Credit: Neon Giant The Ascent is a cyberpunk-themed action role-playing game developed by indie game studio Neon Giant. Games featuring cyberpunk have really made a resurgence, with games like Cyberpunk 2077 attracting a big following. This game has the right mix of cyberpunk aesthetics and captivating gameplay to be one of the best. You play as a worker enslaved by The Ascent Group, a powerful mega corporation that owns just about everyone on your hone world Veles. The Ascent Group has collapsed creating an environment of anarchy. Individuals, syndicates and rival organisations have started battling it out for power. You must stop rival factions from seizing control using everything at your disposal, including an arsenal of weapons.
Gameplay is played from a top-down perspective and includes a twin-shooter ability that allows you to target enemies both up close and far away. The game’s developers have portrayed the grimy, dystopian cyberpunk world exceptionally well. The environment is open-world allowing you to explore and interact with the many weird environments you will discover. You can also upgrade your character's skills and abilities as you go along. Ascent can be played single-player and local co-op and online with up to four players.
3. Red Dead Redemption 2
Credit: Rock Star Games Developer Rock Star Games did a superb job with this western-themed action adventure, such that the game has won more than 175 Game of the Year Awards and received more than 250 perfect scores.
You play as an outlaw named Arthur Morgan - a rough and tumble cowboy and member of the Van der Linde gang. A things pan out, Arthur's gang finds itself on the run from the law and he is forced to choose between his loyalty to his gang, or his morals.
Visually stunning, and with an immersive storyline, many consider Red Dead Redemption 2 to be the best western ever made, which is a pretty darn good endorsement!
2. Metro Exodus
Credit: 4A Games So good are the visuals in Metro Exodus that it has become one of the games we use to benchmark new release gaming laptops. Like previous games in the Metro franchise, Metro Exodus is a first person shooter. You are tasked with fleeing the ruins of the Moscow Metro and then must journey across a post-apocalyptic Russia in search of a new life.
Gameplay is a mixture of combat and stealth. As such, this is not the kind of game you can play by running headfirst into combat with guns blazing. Instead, you will need to understand how to conceal yourself and pick your opportunities to fight. Because of this, the combat feels fresh and exciting each time you engage the enemy. One of the things we love about this game is the vast and incredibly detailed in-game environments. Plus, levels are non-linear giving you plenty of scope to personalise your experience.
1. Elden Ring
Credit: FromSoftware If you buy just one game in 2022, it probably should be this dark fantasy action-RPG by FromSoftware and Namco Bandai Games. The game is considered a natural evolution of the Dark Souls trilogy, with fantastical landscapes, complex dungeons and all manner of crazy creatures to fight. You play as one of the decedents of the Tarnished - an outcast that must regain their status as an Elden Lord by journeying through an Overworld and an Underworld brimming with dangers.
Just 17 days after the the game's release in 2021,12 million copies had been sold making it one of the fastest-selling open world games of all time. Elden Ring has also received universal acclaim by reviewers who have heralded the game's free and open exploration, world design and fast-paced combat.
