Best Difficult Games

NXTO's catalog has 1,093 difficult games. These 30 rank highest once player ratings, Metacritic scores and Steam reviews are combined. The top three: Resident Evil 2, Half-Life and Hades.

How it's ranked: a blend of RAWG player ratings, Metacritic and Steam reviews, adjusted so games with very few ratings can't outrank well-proven ones. Times are average player-reported playtime, so treat them as rough guides.

1. 1
   

   Resident Evil 2

   2019Action, Adventure ★ 4.6/5⏱ ~8.9 h to beat
2. 2
   

   Half-Life

   1998Shooter, ActionPC ★ 4.6/5⏱ ~12 h to beat
3. 3
   

   Hades

   2020Indie, AdventurePC, PS5, Xbox One ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~23.6 h to beat
4. 4
   

   Ori and the Will of the Wisps

   2020Platformer, AdventurePC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~12 h to beat
5. 5
   

   Elden Ring

   2022Action, RPGPC, PS5, Xbox One ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~60.1 h to beat
6. 6
   

   Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

   2019Action, RPGPC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~30.3 h to beat
7. 7
   

   Celeste

   2018Platformer, IndiePC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~8.3 h to beat
8. 8
   

   Hollow Knight

   2017Platformer, IndiePC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~27 h to beat
9. 9
   

   Dark Souls III

   2016Action, RPGPC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~31.2 h to beat
10. 10
    

    Ultimate Doom

    1995Action, Shooter ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~6.1 h to beat
11. 11
    

    Cuphead

    2017Platformer, IndiePC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~10.6 h to beat
12. 12
    

    Ori and the Blind Forest

    2015Platformer, AdventurePC, Xbox One ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~8.2 h to beat
13. 13
    

    Hotline Miami

    2012Indie, ShooterPC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~5.2 h to beat
14. 14
    

    Beat Saber

    2019Indie, ActionPC, PS5, PS4 ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~6.5 h to beat
15. 15
    

    Papers, Please

    2013Educational, IndiePC ★ 4.5/5⏱ ~5 h to beat
16. 16
    

    HYPER DEMON

    2022Shooter, IndiePC ★ 4.5/5~1 h avg. playtime
17. 17
    

    Quake III Arena

    1999Shooter, ActionPC ★ 4.4/5~1 h avg. playtime
18. 18
    

    Slay the Spire

    2019Card, StrategyPC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~12.5 h to beat
19. 19
    

    Baba Is You

    2019Indie, PuzzlePC, Switch ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~7.5 h to beat
20. 20
    

    Katana ZERO

    2019Platformer, IndiePC, Xbox One, Switch ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~4.8 h to beat
21. 21
    

    Return Of The Obra Dinn

    2018Indie, AdventurePC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~8.2 h to beat
22. 22
    

    Resident Evil 4 (2005)

    2005Shooter, ActionPC, PS4 ★ 4.4/5~5 h avg. playtime
23. 23
    

    DOOM

    1993Shooter, ActionPC, PS4, Xbox One ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~11.6 h to beat
24. 24
    

    The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth

    2014Action, RPGPC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~5.6 h to beat
25. 25
    

    Ultrakill

    2020Indie, ActionPC ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~6.5 h to beat
26. 26
    

    DOOM Eternal

    2020Shooter, ActionPC, PS5, Xbox One ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~14.5 h to beat
27. 27
    

    Dwarf Fortress

    2006Strategy, IndiePC ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~48 h to beat
28. 28
    

    Dead Cells

    2018Platformer, IndiePC, Xbox One, PS4 ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~14.1 h to beat
29. 29
    

    Grim Fandango

    1998AdventurePC ★ 4.4/5~1 h avg. playtime
30. 30
    

    Balatro

    2024Casual, StrategyPC, PS5, Switch ★ 4.4/5⏱ ~7.7 h to beat

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