More than 26 years have passed since the original PlayStation made its debut in Japan, marking the beginning of a quarter-century filled with remarkable gaming experiences.
Sony, once an unexpected player in the gaming industry, underwent a significant transformation with the groundbreaking 32-bit technology of the original PlayStation. Following this trend, the PlayStation 2, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2020, took gaming to unprecedented heights.
Despite facing initial challenges, the PS3 established itself as indispensable, while the PlayStation 4 enjoyed immediate and widespread success. Now, the PS5 has begun its journey with remarkable energy and excitement, which games will be added to this list in the future of the best PlayStation exclusives ever?
1. Silent Hill 2
While Silent Hill, is a series originally birthed in 1999 and heavily inspired by Resident Evil and survival-horror games which preceded it. The series didn’t really hit a stride until the second instalment. The second game has long been lauded to be the best game in the series, and – for some – the best survival horror game of all time.
Switching the larger-scale gameplay of Silent Hill 1, Silent Hill 2 ensures player paranoia by introducing smaller environments, lighting trickery and semi-religious symbolism. Silent Hill 2 is a personal journey through the human psyche which employs subversion and puzzling gameplay to perpetuate the fear we all experience when we look deep into the darkness.
Everything in Silent Hill 2 works against James at every turn. Even his inventory management manages to change the way James behaves during the gameplay. James’ personality is systematically destroyed, his mental health consistently undermined and his physical wellbeing at constant peril as every corner exposes him to a subliminal fear and manages to engineer a personal torture chamber in order to completely obliterate any semblance of sanity.
Still one of the best horror games of all-time, Silent Hill 2 placed pieces into the puzzle, we didn’t even know the genre needed. A must play for any horror fan.
2. God of War (2018)
We’re not used to seeing this side of Kratos. In every other instalment, he smashes, thrashes and burns his way through a given mythology with no subtext; this instalment changes that from the moment the opening credits begin to roll.
Returning from a five-year absence, God of War (2018) allows players new-and-old a wonderfully gritty and heartfelt journey. The few years from Kratos, gave Sony a new breath of life and delivered one of the best games of all time.
We play as an older gruffer warrior, voiced by the wonderful Christopher Judge. This Kratos shows a more contemplative side, while undertaking a familial journey with his son. While one may be forgiven for thinking that the inclusion of a child to the proceedings may dilute the experience, the opposite is true. Kratos’ son wields a bow which he uses to solve environmental puzzles and battle monolithic monsters. The perspective of the series changes from an aerial – almost detached – view, for a more personal and intimate over-the-shoulder. This allows the player to experience the gameplay at the same pace as Kratos, and this serves to make the experience more relatable.
Vocal performances throughout, visually stunning environments, moment-to-moment rewarding gameplay and encapsulating narratives make God of War (2018) an absolute powerhouse and the best God of War game to date.
3. Bloodborne
Coming 4 years after Dark Souls slashed its way onto our consoles, developer Hidetaka Miyazaki swaps the Medieval-era of the Souls series so far. Bloodborne replaces this with a Victorian-Lovecraft affair brimming with horrific monstrosities and ancient conspiracies.
Bloodborne is a middle ground between the Souls and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. The game is mostly an RPG as we have seen with Souls and Souls-likes in recent years, but with splashings of the action mechanics which the series started to include upon the second release, Dark Souls 2.
While the combat in Bloodborne can sometimes be maddening, it does allow a more dynamic and parry-riposte based mechanic system than previously seen. As with all FromSoft games, the narrative of Bloodborne is an inch-wide and a mile deep and once you start to read descriptions of items, taking part in side-quests and back-tracking through previously explored areas, you will discover a story which would not be out of place within a Lovecraft novel.
4. Demon’s Souls
Before Dark Souls and Elden Ring, there was Demon’s Souls. Due to it being a Sony-exclusive, many missed this the first time around, luckily it can now be played on PS5 in the shape of a remaster, which was overseen by Hidetaka Miyazaki. Demon’s Souls introduced every mechanic which the Souls series and Souls-likes have become known for.
These include – but are not limited to – respawning enemies by way of bonfire mechanics and the open fantasy world.
The stand-out point for the Souls series is the concept of death being a teacher, rather than a punishment.
Demon’s Souls was largely an experimental project, even when compared to later titles in the series. The game is crushingly difficult and doesn’t really contain any real narrative. Even with this being the case, the atmosphere and the gameplay allow for an experience unlike any other Souls game.
Demon’s Souls is entirely player-focused and allows the player to explore the world rather than being bogged down in overarching narrative. This is a breath of fresh air and is yet to be repeated in any Souls game or Soulslike since.
5. Journey
In a world of gun-toting lunatics, car-jacking maniacs and boss-smashing heroes, Journey is a creature of a different ilk. Journey is a long contemplative – pardon the pun – Journey, which focuses more on environmental interaction and emotional invocation.
During gameplay, you guide a small hooded creature through a barren-yet beautiful desert. As you traverse the desert, you are able to find a companion along the way. The companion system introduces the idea of being able to play with real-life online people, but this is not the focus of the series. In addition to the inclusion being incidental, rather than coincidental, you never communicate with the other player in a traditional way. Instead of conventional communication methods, you are able to solve puzzles together and bond in a way never-before-seen in a game, or even since.
In eschewing the traditional shackles of online-gameplay, instead opting to focus on bonds through experience, Journey manages to deliver a memorable experience which will either leave you crying or perpetually confused, but my word, is it worth it.
6. Horizon: Zero Dawn
Not exactly a surprise to any ‘best ever lists’, Horizon: Zero Dawn has long been welcome to the pantheon and rightly so.
Coming from Killzone developer, Guerilla Games. Horizon: Zero Dawn lands the player in the mysterious life of Aloy. Aloy is a hunter in a world occupied by robotic dinosaurs and human survivors alike. These creatures, great and small, can be taken down using a variety of methods, the most iconic of which is the bow.
As you traverse the stunning world and unravel the mystery of this strange new world, you will tackle beasts across the realm. The standout aspect of Horizon: Zero Dawn is how Aloy approaches each encounter. Every beast has a weakness that she can exploit using traps, throwables, and precision arrow shots. The satisfaction of finally taking down a Thunderjaw is something you can’t explain, only experience.
When combining all of this along with one of the most jaw-dropping finales in game history, it is not difficult to see why Horizon is a game constantly on people’s minds and mouths alike.
7. Crash Bandicoot
Every platform has a mascot; Nintendo has Mario, Sega has Sonic and PlayStation has Crash Bandicoot.
Crash Bandicoot started life as an exclusive for Sony new PlayStation games console. Released in a world where Mario was dominating the platform game genre, Crash Bandicoot faced an uphill struggle.
Crash Bandicoot is a character and series brimming with humour, double-entendre and chaos. Every stage is a hectic journey through the unknown and due to the ever-threatening nature of the game, a quiet moment is never to be had.
Crash Bandicoot may, in recent years, have taken a step back from the mainstream. For anyone who owned a PlayStation console during the last 30 years, Crash welcomed us into our living rooms and will always be regarded as the PlayStation Mascot. Just as Sonic saved Sega, Crash saved PlayStation—not financially, but reputationally—by bringing a manic whirlwind of wackiness. This association stems from the platform being heavily associated with horror and adult games. Crash Bandicoot manages to bring the console back to the children, for better or for worse.
8. Final Fantasy VII
Often the only reason anyone would decide to purchase a PlayStation, Final Fantasy is a fan-favourite across many platforms. Heralding the arrival of the modern Japanese RPG, Final Fantasy VII provides a CD-powered cinematic explosion.
Final Fantasy VII is home to some of the most gripping cut-scenes along with some of the most memorable characters in any series to date. Final Fantasy VII is constantly held as the best in the series by many, and it is not difficult to see why.
While not the first game in the series, it is arguably the most memorable. Following series icon, Cloud as he joins an eco-terrorist organization in order to stop a world-controlling mega-corporation. The organisation is attempting to use the planet’s essence as an energy source.
Introducing the polarizing character of Sephiroth, Final Fantasy VII manages to tread the line between forgettable fan-service and series defining classic. The strategic approach in Final Fantasy VII may not be the world’s most recognisable, but even today, it stands to be a headline act among many other JRPG footnotes.
9. Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid is often hailed as one of the first ‘interactive experiences’. Combining vast amounts of voice-acting and long drawn-out cutscenes, Metal Gear Solid manages to tell a story like no other, and in a way which had never been done before. Series creator Hideo Kojima has become an industry icon in recent years for his auteur approach to game-making. Kijoma constantly leans on Hollywood tropes in order to tell a subversive story and his first foray into the stealth-action genre shows the DNA of what the series would become.
From the moment Snake starts sneaking around inside a cardboard box, it becomes increasingly obvious that this game doesn’t take itself too seriously. With the constant narration and berating of Snake as he progresses through each stage, and the inevitable “SNAAAAAAAAAAKE” when the player dies, Metal Gear Solid stands out as distinctly different from other stealth games of its time and cannot be compared in any way imaginable.
It eschews the bars of seriousness and instead leans on satire and spoof, but in a way which is overtly anti-western in the most loving way.
Metal Gear Solid began the series’ fourth-wall breaking trope and tradition with the inclusion of the iconic Psycho Mantis. This trope would continue throughout the series, finally culminating in the non-MGS game Death Stranding.
10. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Wrapping up the series, Uncharted 4 shows a retired Drake as he goes back into the world of adventure and intrigue, by his brother Sam. Uncharted 4 has some incredible moments which wouldn’t be out-of-place in a Bond movie. Most notably, a car chase through the bustling streets of Madagascar.
Every action sequence is shown in eye-watering detail and takes full advantage of the PS4’s hardware capability. Every environment is blisteringly beautiful and even the enemy AI is miles-ahead when compared to previous installments.
Uncharted 4 feels similar in all the best ways to the series, everything rolls along at a pace which we have come to expect and even with the most forgettable villain of the series, it stands to be the best resignation letter which Uncharted 4 could’ve hoped for.
11. The Last of Us
Imagine, if you will, combining all the best bits of Uncharted, Resident Evil and Splinter Cell. With that combination comes, Naughty Dog’s The Last Of Us. A gut-wrenching gritty post-apocalyptic nightmarish experience which sits proudly in many gamers’ collections.
Thematically, The Last Of Us scores a proverbial home-run. Following protagonists Joel and Ellie, as they make their way through the world in order to find a cure for the world-ending plague which has fallen upon the world. You travel through locales dominated entirely by plants and nature as wildlife strolls through – once – bustling metropolitan areas.
The beginning of The Last Of Us sweeps the carpet from under our collective feet as Joel encounters an unimaginable tragedy, only to then confront chaos and calamity. The Last Of Us tells a heart-breaking story of love, loss, and familial connection. Wrapping it entirely in a stealth-action adventure that has recently—and rightly—birthed a TV series in its own right. And with one of the most polarizing climaxes of any media product to date, if you haven’t played it, you need to.