For PC games released in 2025, Hades II tops Metacritic’s Windows PC ranking with a 94 Metascore, followed by Blue Prince at 92. The list below uses Metacritic’s release-year scope and critic-review aggregates—not a ranking of the most-played games or a claim that one title is right for every player.
What “best PC games of 2025” means here
This guide covers games released for Windows PC between January 1 and December 31, 2025. It follows Metacritic’s ranking, published January 5, 2026, and includes titles with at least seven scored professional reviews. Metascores summarize critic reviews; they are not measures of sales, player counts or popularity. Metacritic’s 2025 PC ranking and eligibility criteria
That scope differs from asking which games were best to play on PC during 2025, regardless of release date. PC Gamer’s October 2025 Top 100 takes the broader approach: it is an annual editorial ranking of games playable on PC, not a 2025-release list. Its longlist contained 300 nominated games, and its scoring weights quality at 60%, importance at 20% and freshness at 20%. PC Gamer says quality is the most important factor; these are its editorial judgments, not a popularity measurement. PC Gamer’s Top 100 methodology and list
The 20 best-reviewed Windows PC releases of 2025
These titles and scores follow the order on Metacritic’s published list. For a quick choice, use the genre and play-style notes alongside the score: a highly rated puzzle game, co-op adventure or action RPG may suit very different players.
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| Rank | Game | Metascore | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hades II | 94 | Roguelike action RPG and sequel to Hades; Metacritic’s Best New PC Game of 2025. |
| 2 | Blue Prince | 92 | Puzzle and mystery game built around discovery and depth. |
| 3 | Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 | 91 | Role-playing game. |
| 4 | Hollow Knight: Silksong | 90 | Action-adventure sequel featuring Hornet. |
| 5 | Split Fiction | 90 | Two-player cooperative action adventure. |
| 6 | Final Fantasy VII Rebirth | 90 | Action, strategy and role-playing in an open science-fiction world. |
| 7 | The Last of Us Part II Remastered | 90 | Action-adventure sequel with a roguelike survival mode. |
| 8 | Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter | 89 | Remake of the first Trails in the Sky role-playing game. |
| 9 | despelote | 89 | Slice-of-life adventure set in Quito, Ecuador. |
| 10 | The Talos Principle: Reawakened | 89 | Puzzle remake with added content and a community puzzle editor. |
| 11 | The Seance of Blake Manor | 89 | Detective investigation adventure in a supernatural Irish folklore setting. |
| 12 | Kingdom Come: Deliverance II | 89 | Medieval open-world action RPG. |
| 13 | Monster Hunter Wilds | 88 | Monster-hunting action game. |
| 14 | Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake | 88 | Remakes of the first two Dragon Quest role-playing games. |
| 15 | FINAL FANTASY TACTICS – The Ivalice Chronicles | 87 | Tactical role-playing game. |
| 16 | Monster Train 2 | 87 | Roguelike deckbuilder. |
| 17 | Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo | 87 | Top-down action-adventure with platforming and puzzle-solving. |
| 18 | Lumines Arise | 87 | Rhythm-puzzle game. |
| 19 | Dispatch | 87 | Narrative workplace comedy and superhero dispatch-management adventure. |
| 20 | Bionic Bay | 87 | Physics-based science-fiction platformer. |
Scores and order are as published by Metacritic. The list is a critic aggregate, not an individualized buying guide.
How to choose from the list
For action and demanding combat
Start with Hades II for roguelike action, Hollow Knight: Silksong for action-adventure, or Monster Hunter Wilds for monster-hunting. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II offer role-playing at different scales and with different blends of action and systems.
Rank #2
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For puzzles, discovery and strategy
Blue Prince and The Talos Principle: Reawakened are the clearest puzzle-focused picks. For turn-based or deck-based systems, consider FINAL FANTASY TACTICS – The Ivalice Chronicles or Monster Train 2; Lumines Arise pairs puzzles with rhythm.
For narrative focus or a distinct setting
despelote is a slice-of-life adventure set in Quito, while The Seance of Blake Manor centers on detective investigation and Irish folklore. Dispatch brings a workplace-comedy frame to superhero management. For larger role-playing narratives, the list includes Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
Rank #3
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- Tempered Side Case Panel | Custom RGB Lighting | Keyboard and Mouse
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For playing with someone else
Split Fiction is the specifically identified two-player cooperative game in this ranking. The list’s other descriptions do not establish that they offer co-op or multiplayer, so check the game’s current store listing if that feature is essential.
Why rankings and awards can disagree
Metacritic’s Metascore ranking, an individual publication’s review score, a staff-curated Top 100 and an awards ballot measure different things. PC Gamer’s Game of the Year awards are based on contributor nominations—up to six games released that year—and votes, with categories assigned to suit the strengths of the chosen games. They are editorial selections, not a neutral aggregate ranking. PC Gamer’s 2025 Game of the Year awards and method
Rank #4
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- Built-in Hall small joystick with sinking design, supports L3, R3 infinite pressing, super-linear, no dead zone, and accurately perceives player finger movements.
- Added 3-axis gravity sensing+3-axis gyroscope design, by sensing player's tilting, rotating hand movements, and converting them into responses in the game, allowing for intuitive gaming.
- C surface adds L4, R4 programmable macro keys, combined with WinControls tool, to achieve one-click trig gering of combination keys, and easily play PC online games.
- L2, R2 changed to linear analog trigger buttons, accurately simulating key responses under different pressur es, accurately performing shooting, acceleration, and other operations, and experiencing dynamic changes in the game more realistically
A high review score signals strong critical reception, not that a game is the most popular or the best fit for a particular player. PC Gamer explicitly distinguishes review scores from popularity; its 2025 high-score feature also did not include every game discussed in its year-end awards, including Battlefield 6, Arc Raiders and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. PC Gamer’s highest review scores of 2025
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What this ranking does not tell you
- Popularity or sales: the scores are review aggregates, not player-count or sales data.
- Performance on your PC: the ranking does not establish frame rates, hardware requirements or how a game will run on a particular system.
- Your best match: genre, co-op needs, narrative preference and appetite for action or puzzles matter as much as a small score difference.
Metacritic also maintains a 2025 PC Metascore browse page, but the list used here is specifically its published top-20 ranking with the stated review threshold. Metacritic’s 2025 PC Metascore list
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