Open-world video games have been a dime a dozen all through the 2010s, with studios chasing that Skyrim success with nearly reckless abandon. Advances in tech have since streamlined the method of creating big recreation worlds, giving studios a greater purpose to take a position their efforts in them. Whereas avid gamers nonetheless clamor for a satisfying open world to discover and immerse themselves in, curiosity has shifted to extra targeted and curated experiences. Linear video games are on an upward development, with platformers like Astro Bot and motion video games like Black Fantasy Wukong successful over avid gamers’ hearts and wallets this 12 months. Listed below are the 15 greatest linear video games of 2024.
Arizona Sunshine Remake
The unique Arizona Sunshine from 2016 induced a little bit of a stir relating to a few of its content material being locked behind Intel Core i7 CPUs. Now in 2024, you may play all of that content material, together with two giant DLCs and quite a few updates with a ground-up remake to match Arizona Sunshine 2’s visuals. You’re largely taking pictures zombies together with your two VR arms all through the linear narrated marketing campaign, however there’s additionally lots of quirky environmental interactions that make this a traditional VR expertise; and better of all, it has three-player co-op to triple the shenanigans. When you personal a VR set, Arizona Sunshine Remake is a transparent no-brainer.
Warhammer 40K Area Marine 2
Area Marine 2’s multiplayer choices are great enjoyable, however it’s the solo marketing campaign the place the core meat and potatoes of the sport are discovered. The story kicks off the place Area Marine 1 left off, with Captain Titus returning to command his squad in opposition to the Tyranid swarms after a mortal wound. With a runtime round 10 hours lengthy, Area Marine 2’s marketing campaign is a riotous time stuffed with spectacular vistas and visceral fight. It is a hack and slash in lots of methods, however Area Marine 2 emphasizes exact countering greater than its predecessor, including a bit of additional talent to the combination. Grabbing a companion to run by the separate co-op missions is a deal with as nicely, however the AI companions aren’t unhealthy both with their constant therapeutic and tanky protection. Area Marine 2 looks like a blast from the previous with its fast-paced marketing campaign density.
Silent Hill 2 Remake
Remaking a horror masterpiece like Silent Hill 2 isn’t any straightforward feat, but Bloober one way or the other pulled it off with nice success. A key ingredient in that success is the expanded environments. The atmospheric hallways and foggy out of doors areas drastically encourage exploration, main the participant to a number of recent gadgets and collectables that may be seen from any angle. Serving to you navigate the expanded areas is the brand new over-the-shoulder digital camera perspective, which provides additional context to environments. The unique Silent Hill 2 clocked in at round 12 or so hours, however the remake can simply take double that point from all of the added exploration. Nonetheless, the remake maintains the dense pacing of the unique regardless of this, making it one of many extra spectacular and scary linear video games on this record.
Black Fantasy Wukong
Black Fantasy Wukong takes a relatively unorthodox strategy to degree design, seesawing forwards and backwards between corridor-like linearity to extensive open environments. Most puzzling of all, there’s no map or navigation instruments to help your exploration within the recreation. Regardless of this, we couldn’t assist however marvel on the number of biomes and great thing about environments inside the Journey To the West-inspired story. But it surely isn’t simply among the environments that proceed linearly, your weapons and armor robotically improve as you progress too. Black Fantasy Wukong is a masterclass in focus; it doesn’t meander and bloat the participant’s time with frivolous stuff, as an alternative honing in on what makes it nice.
Stellar Blade
When you’re conversant in the way in which Nier Automata handles degree design, you’ll really feel at dwelling inside Stellar Blade. One space that Stellar Blade expands upon its degree design is the partaking collectibles scattered throughout its environments. You could have all the pieces from soda cans to posters and packing containers of loot to gather, rewarding you with new costumes for Eve and her companions to put on. The wide-linear nature of the environments hits a sweat spot that all the time manages to make you are feeling such as you’re progressing ahead whereas giving satisfying room for exploration as you accomplish that. Elements of the story have you ever strictly going from A to B with collectibles nestled inside secret routes off the overwhelmed path, whereas others are open zones meant for questing and exploration. Stellar Blade excels in the way in which it mixes urgency and exploration with its wide-linear degree design.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2
Hellblade 2 takes fairly a distinct strategy to linear degree design. As a result of zoomed-in concentrate on very particular places, Ninja Concept managed to go all-out adorning every hand-crafted setting and presenting all of it with an unmatched cinematic aptitude. It’s no exaggeration to say that Hellblade 2 is among the many most graphically spectacular video games so far. This mixture of chiseled graphical constancy with cinematic aptitude assist cement Hellblade 2’s Norse-inspired places into the participant’s reminiscence. It could be a simple recreation in all facets of its gameplay, however Hellblade 2’s psychologically wealthy narrative and spectacular visible presentation punctuate its linear design with a daring exclamation level.
Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Regardless of introducing a crusing ship into the Mario & Luigi sequence, Brothership nonetheless follows a roughly conventional vital path. The brothers’ overarching objective this time round is lighting the 4 Nice Lighthouses all through Concordia’s oceans. The builders made certain every of the 4 Nice Lighthouse dungeons have been top-tier, incomes the highest spot on my record of Mario RPG dungeons. After they’re not puzzling their method by the Nice Lighthouse dungeons, Mario & Luigi are busy linking collectively the distinctly themed islands with the ship. Brothership threads its themes of connections brilliantly by the narrative and humorous writing, forming a cohesive story that impresses regardless of its primary look.
The Plucky Squire
The Plucky Squire mashes collectively a bunch of various genres onto the framework of a top-down journey recreation. A majority of your time is spent swinging round a sword defeating enemies, however the sheer quantity of wierd little minigames starting from Punch-Out sequences, to Duck Hunt shootouts, and even some turn-based RPG enjoyable, is chaotically enduring. After which there’s the puzzles that ask you to rearrange sentences for brand new props to look inside the image e book you inhabit. And sure, you even get to come out of the e book and into ‘the true world’ a number of occasions. The pop-up e book aesthetic places a bow on the entire bundle, making The Plucky Squire probably the most enduring linear video games of the 12 months.
Neva
Just like the studio’s earlier recreation Gris, Neva does extra than simply supply up a compelling platforming recreation; it’s an emotional audio/visible artwork piece. The bond between Alba and her wolf pup Neva grows because the seasons change all through the journey, manifested in flip by extra superior platforming challenges. Neva differentiates itself from Gris with its emphasis on combo-based fight and precision platforming sequences, offering a punchy and satisfying linear journey filled with coronary heart.
Akimbot
When you’re on the lookout for an old-school motion/journey recreation that’s as easy as it’s enjoyable, look no additional than Akimbot. Like its Ratchet and Clank inspiration, you’ve gotten a spread of gun varieties to unload on enemies with by a linear story. The pacing of the motion is continuous, supplying a relentless stream of action-platforming enjoyable. And one of the best factor is its gameplay doesn’t overstay its welcome due to quite a lot of actions and sequences breaking apart the standard run-and-gunning (such because the bullet hell sections). Akimbot is likely one of the these video games that’s easy to simply drop in and play with out an excessive amount of thought or prep-work, and I nonetheless usually get the urge to start out up one other playthrough many months after finishing it.
Lego Horizon Adventures
Regardless of its open world supply materials, the Lego-fied model of Horizon Zero Daybreak is likely one of the most linear and easy Lego video games so far. You play by the essential storyline of Horizon Zero Daybreak by linear mission-based ranges, returning to the Mom’s Coronary heart hub space in between your excursions. There’s not a ton of exploration on this recreation apart from some smaller open areas and branching paths within the ranges, however the hub does enable for some satisfying customization and personalization. Whether or not you’re a Horizon fan or a Lego connoisseur, you owe it to your self to play this distinctive tackle the PlayStation IP solo or with two different buddies.
Princess Peach Showtime
When you’re on the lookout for a enjoyable mish-mash of various gameplay concepts and themes introduced in true Nintendo trend, Princess Peach Showtime will fulfill. Every stage has a singular theme that fully alters the gameplay and aesthetics, in addition to, in fact, Peach’s outfit. From lassoing up bandits on a horse to swordfighting by hack and slash dungeons, the inventive ranges offer you causes to come back again and replay them. Like earlier Good Really feel video games, levels are completely stuffed with collectables and secrets and techniques, offering stable replay worth.
Astro Bot
In contrast to Princess Peach or Akimbot, Astro Bot takes a extra open strategy to a few of its ranges, taking a cue from one thing like Tremendous Mario Galaxy. Nonetheless, Astro Bot’s ranges comprise largely linear challenges, and oh how enjoyable they’re. 3D platforming by no means felt higher than with Astro Bot’s excessive tech Twin Sense performance – it goes past a mere gimmick, being a major operate of gameplay. Each motion within the recreation is accompanied by a signature rumble from the controller. Every stage is tailor-made particularly to the PS5 and its controller, offering a singular type of console expertise. Likewise, levels take full benefit of Astro’s skills in inventive and imaginative methods, proving that linearity might be an unlimited power in platforming video games.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails By way of Dawn
I do know, I do know, an ongoing JPRG sequence with a dozen linked video games is a tough promote for most people. However you owe it to your self to offer Trails By way of Dawn the sunshine of day. For one, it types the start of a brand new arc with a recent solid of characters set in a distinct province from earlier video games. It’s additionally only a phenomenal turn-based RPG by and thru. When you take pleasure in dialogue-heavy RPG tales with a linear construction that permits you to discover its cities at your personal tempo, Trails By way of Dawn stands out as the shock hit that will get you invested into the broader sequence.
Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle
Not solely is that this the primary Indy recreation in 15 years, it’s additionally a return for MachineGames after their run of profitable Wolfenstein reboot titles. As previews have noticed, Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle options lots of stealth. Its core gameplay revolves much less round – nicely, revolvers – than you’d come to anticipate, supplying an expertise extra in step with the Thief sequence. You’re usually hiding behind baddies to knock them out earlier than discovering that ever elusive key to the locked door down the hallway. What we’ve seen of the trailers has us reassured that MachineGames is aware of what makes Indiana Jones tales so enjoyable charming. Hopefully, the stealth mechanics and story handle to succeed in the highs that the IP has been missing in recent times when Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle launches December 9th.
