The best games of 2022

The end of the year is all about retrospection, so let’s look back at the best games of 2022

The year 2022 is almost out – thank the maker – and we’re all crossing our fingers and toes that 2023 is, in fact, our year. No more putting on weight whenever we’re in the same room as cake. No more feeling like we’ve never slept in our lives. No more.

Still, even if none of our dreams true, at least 2023 is looking like a brilliant year for video games. We’ve got things like Starfield, Redfall, and the Resident Evil 4 remake to look forward to. But now isn’t the time to look forward. Not yet. The end of the year is all about retrospection, so let’s look back at the best games of 2022.

Best action game of 2022 - God of War Ragnarök

Sony Interactive Entertainment / Santa Monica Studio

Bayonetta 3 might have the edge as a pure combat game, but Ragnarök is the full package. The perfect sequel. At times it feels like two games in one, wrapping up God of War’s Norse saga in an epic tale that stretches across 50 hours – 50 hours that somehow feel like 10. Combat is better, the story is grander, and every character gets a moment to shine. Sony Santa Monica doesn’t miss. 

Best RPG of 2022 - Elden Ring

FromSoftware doesn’t care about fancy dialogue options that make your playthrough feel unique to you – the developer gets it done through mechanics. Which of the dozens of weapons will you choose? How will you combine them? What will you find? In what order will you tackle Elden Ring’s massive open world? Most other games can only dream of being as vast as this while retaining the mystery and surprise over 100 hours. 

Best strategy game of 2022 - Marvel’s Midnight Suns

Firaxis came back this year to prove, once again, that it’s the daddy of strategy games. Everyone expected XCOM with superheroes, but Midnight Suns instead arrived as a weird blend of traditional strategy, card games, and Fire Emblem-style relationship massaging. You can still see the Firaxis fingerprints all over it, though – especially when you punch some sucker through a wall. 

Best horror game of 2022 - Signalis

Signalis starts off as an homage to classic survival horror games, but it morphs into something far more special as the game goes on. Named after the radio signals you have to tune into and interpret, there’s a lot of smart puzzle design, an amazing story, and some nostalgic combat waiting for you if you take the plunge. 

Best ongoing game of 2022 - Apex Legends

Apex Legends changes drastically with every new hero and every new map – this year we’ve had a bunch of the former and one of the latter. Adding in new high-speed rails on the latest map has transformed the pace of the game, allowing for faster rotations and less time between exciting engagements. It might not have the constant drip feed of content as Fortnite, but everything that does come to Apex Legends is substantial. 

Best indie game of 2022 - Cult of the Lamb

Massive Monster

Blending roguelite elements with a base-building game where you grow a cult and sacrifice your followers to the old gods is a stroke of genius. From setting out the beliefs of your doctrine to cleaning up poop, you’re tasked with maintaining every aspect of your flock. And when you do go off on a mission, there’s crunchy, tactile combat to be enjoyed, too. 

Best co-op game of 2022 - Warhammer 40k: Darktide

There’s nothing quite like holding off a choke point as a hulking Ogryn while dozens of limbs crash against your shield. Actually, there is. There’s the moment after, when you lift that same shield up high and smash it into 20 mouths at once, blood spatters across an industrial walkway and bodies careen through the air. Darktide is such a massive step up from the studio’s previous game, Vermintide 2, and the higher difficulties really test the limits of your teamwork, asking for proper team comp and strategies to deal with the endless meat hordes. 

Best shooter of 2022 - Metal: Hellsinger

You’re a demon whose soul is music and fury, and you have to fight your way into the pits of hell. No more context is needed. Sitting somewhere between Devil May Cry and Doom, Metal: Hellsinger asks you to battle to the beat. Featuring tracks from metal legends, every single stage is designed to be played and replayed, learned and mastered, until you enter that perfect flow state and the music and fury enter you own soul, too. 

Best racing game of 2022 - Need for Speed Unbound

It doesn’t have the best actual driving in a racing game and it might have the most annoying characters ever created, but Need for Speed Unbound has more under the hood than it appears. Like Most Wanted, you get harassed by cops as you race, but the twist is that you have to bank your winnings from each session by getting safely back to one of the safehouses dotted around the open world. Race more and you can get more cash, but the heat level rises and you’re more at risk of losing it. Not only does this system add a lot of tension to the game, but it also gives you a real sense of ownership over your cars. The cash is hard-earned, and so is everything you buy, from the vehicles themselves to the tune-ups you give them. 

Best remaster/remake of 2022 - The Last of Us Part 1

Some people said it was too soon, but The Last of Us Part 1 was well worth a revisit when it launched in 2022. Not only was it graphically superior to the original game, but playing it after the sequel recontextualized a lot of the scenes, lending new weight to some of the game’s most emotional moments.