The Best Single Player PC Action Games of the Last 10-ish Years

[dirtyferret]

So now that everyone has built their new Ryzen 3 gaming PCs it's time for another one of my top ten PC game polls that everyone loves! So recapping; the FPS poll had one clear winner and then a variety of other titles fighting it out. The RPG poll was a clear two man race. In fact bit tech did a similar poll for RPGs with virtually the exact same games I picked!...although in all fairness I ripped off their concept for the FPS poll.

So a few rules;

You can vote for more then one game
The poll is for fun and limited to ten options so games do get left off.
Games are from 2008 to 2018
Feel free to mention any game you believe belongs or doesn't belong on the list, maybe you find a new game or two to play.
I limit it to one game per series as to get as many games mentioned as possible.
I use a variety of lists from metacritic, pcgamer, pcgamesn, rockpapershotgun, gamespot among others to try to come up with a fair list

So the first question is "What is an Action game?" and the answer is...no one knows. Half the lists I looked at included RPGs, FPS, strategy, etc., etc., Are they games that play better with a controller then KB and mouse? Are they third person games rather then first? Is Portal 2 an action game or a puzzle game? What about series like Assassins Creed or Middle Earth that start out action games (or action like) but then move to more RPG-ish games? Making this list sucked so I expect a bit of backlash but like I said, if I missed something post it. I tried to remove any game that probably would fit more onto the top FPS or RPG list even if the game itself did not make that list.

Just to beat some of you to the punch;
Batman Arkham Asylum over Arkham Knight? WTF?
Literally the professional and user reviews for both games were the same so I went with the first game.

Where is GTA V, the greatest action game of all time?
GTA V is one the greatest reviewed action games of all time, its just IV maybe the greatest reviewed action game of all time so to give some other games some love I went with IV over V.

 

[kapone32]

So now that everyone has built their new Ryzen 3 gaming PCs it's time for another one of my top ten PC game polls that everyone loves! So recapping; the FPS poll had one clear winner and then a variety of other titles fighting it out. The RPG poll was a clear two man race. In fact bit tech did a similar poll for RPGs with virtually the exact same games I picked!...although in all fairness I ripped off their concept for the FPS poll.

So a few rules;

You can vote for more then one game
The poll is for fun and limited to ten options so games do get left off.
Games are from 2008 to 2018
Feel free to mention any game you believe belongs or doesn't belong on the list, maybe you find a new game or two to play.
I limit it to one game per series as to get as many games mentioned as possible.
I use a variety of lists from metacritic, pcgamer, pcgamesn, rockpapershotgun, gamespot among others to try to come up with a fair list

So the first question is "What is an Action game?" and the answer is...no one knows. Half the lists I looked at included RPGs, FPS, strategy, etc., etc., Are they games that play better with a controller then KB and mouse? Are they third person games rather then first? Is Portal 2 an action game or a puzzle game? What about series like Assassins Creed or Middle Earth that start out action games (or action like) but then move to more RPG-ish games? Making this list sucked so I expect a bit of backlash but like I said, if I missed something post it. I tried to remove any game that probably would fit more onto the top FPS or RPG list even if the game itself did not make that list.

Just to beat some of you to the punch;
Batman Arkham Asylum over Arkham Knight? WTF?
Literally the professional and user reviews for both games were the same so I went with the first game.

Where is GTA V, the greatest action game of all time?
GTA V is one the greatest reviewed action games of all time, its just IV maybe the greatest reviewed action game of all time so to give some other games some love I went with IV over V.

Where is Just Cause 3?

 

[dirtyferret]

Where is Just Cause 3?

Just cause 2 made more lists, had better professional reviews and user reviews then 3.

 

[dorsetknob]

I Voted Crysis oh wait its not in the list

 

[Vario]

There are lots of good games missing from this list. Since I can only vote on the list, I voted for GTA IV. It came out 10.5 years ago which is almost outside your 10-ish window.

 

[Deleted member 178884]

Voted Just cause 2, solely because there is plenty of good titles missing that I personally prefer.

 

[Fluffmeister]

I loved Dying Light, and yes Arkham Asylum was great but I loved Arkham City even more! Either way.... tough to decide really, all have their merits one way or another.

 

[dirtyferret]

Voted Just cause 2, solely because there is plenty of good titles missing that I personally prefer.

list them

 

[Deleted member 178884]

list them

Total War Rome 2 : 2013
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain : 2015
Civilization V / VI: 2010/2016
That's just a few of the games I probably play most.

 

[64K]

Total War Rome 2 : 2013
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain : 2015
Civilization V / VI: 2010/2016
That's just a few of the games I probably play most.

Total War: Rome II and Civilization V and VI are strategy games. His poll is for action games.

 

[Deleted member 178884]

Total War Rome 2 and Civilization V and VI are strategy games. His poll is for action games.

Oops, missed that. Though MGSV should definitely make the list.

 

[Sithaer]

From this list and from the ones I played I liked Rise of the Tomb Raider the most,already finished it twice and probably not the last time either.

DMC 5 was good but it felt a bit short-ish and I actually did not like Just Cause 2 but I like the third.

Edit: If DMC/Mordor made the list then maybe Darksiders 'Action-Adventure' could be on it too,I would vote for those for sure.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

In order:
PAYDAY 2 (co-op is great but don't need it to enjoy it)
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Consortium: The Tower <-- PC exclusive for now.
Dishonored
Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Not inclined to vote for any in the poll despite playing 7 of 10. Assassin's Creed II was better than Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. Just Cause 3 was better than Just Cause 2 (literally only has 7 missions, otherwise open world grind that's not fun at all). Saints Row 2, if you work around the issues of running it, is far better than Saints Row IV. Middle Earth: Shadow of War was so much better than Middle Earth: Shadow Of Mordor. Just listen to that!

And the story was the best Middle Earth story I've seen to date (IMO, better than Lord of the Rings trilogy).

 

[Deleted member 178884]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Definitely one to add - it surely can't be missed.

 

[dirtyferret]

Oops, missed that. Though MGSV should definitely make the list.

Good game and good professional reviews, I had it on my original list. For some reason user reviews were look warm and it didn't make as many top action game lists as some of the other games. It's definitely one those games that belongs in the discussion hence why I asked you to list your games.

Definitely one to add - it surely can't be missed.

It came in second in the RPG poll, see link above

 

[64K]

In order:
PAYDAY 2 (co-op is great but don't need it to enjoy it)
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Consortium: The Tower
Dishonored
Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Not inclined to vote for any in the poll despite playing 7 of 10. Assassin's Creed II was better than Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. Just Cause 3 was better than Just Cause 2 (literally only has 7 missions, otherwise open world grind that's not fun at all). Saints Row 2, if you work around the issues of running it, is far better than Saints Row IV. Middle Earth: Shadow of War was so much better than Middle Earth: Shadow Of Mordor. Just listen to that!

I would have voted for either Dishonored or Deus Ex: Human Revolution had they been in the poll.

 

[John Naylor]

None of the above .. only finished 2 of the 10

 

[dirtyferret]

I would have voted for either Dishonored or Deus Ex: Human Revolution had they been in the poll.

Human Revolution was in the FPS poll since it's a bit of action/FPS/RPG hybrid and did not get a whole lot of love (even though I enjoyed it)

 

[rtwjunkie]

I would have voted for either Dishonored or Deus Ex: Human Revolution had they been in the poll.

Yeah, so many games not in the poll. I ith what’s there, I can’t even vote.

I mean, Dishonored may be one of the most perfectly done games ever. It consistently is in most top 10 of all time games.

 

[advanced3]

Ewwww, Single player games....

I think the last one I played all the way through was RE2, so that gets my vote.

 

[sam_86314]

I think Saints Row 2 should be on the list. I'd say it rivals 3 and 4 despite having an abomination of a PC port (though it isn't that hard to get it running reasonably well).

The story is good, it perfectly balances being funny and serious (unlike later entries), the options and detail in the character customization are unrivaled by later entries, and the game world has all sorts of neat little things that newer entries don't.

I personally prefer Saints Row 2 over GTA V, but who knows, maybe I'm insane. I think it really deserves a remake or remaster.

 

[dirtyferret]

Ewwww, Single player games....

I think the last one I played all the way through was RE2, so that gets my vote.

This actually brings up two good points, the first is a very good article on kotaku about the state of the single player game from large publishers

This is worth considering, because as big publishers prioritize live, service-oriented games, the number of games on their schedules has dropped. If you look at the Wikipedia listings for EA, Ubisoft, and Activision games released by year, you’ll get a stark—if unscientific—picture of how each big publisher’s release slate has thinned out in the last five years, relying on recurring cash cows like sports games and annualized franchises and little else. In 2008, those three publishers released 98 games; in 2018 they released just 28, not including expansions.

The Video Game Industry Can't Go On Like This

At about this time next year, we’ll have a pretty good idea of what the next generation of video games will look like. New consoles will likely be shown off, bold new streaming initiatives will begin to launch, and we’ll see all the wonderful kinds of games they will bring us. All these new...

kotaku.com

and the second point is making these lists is more of a list of franchises. Every game seems to have a III, IV, or higher number after the title. See how many Assassin Creed games there are or Tomb Raider games.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Since "Action" is the main criteria, may I presume an "Action RPG" also qualifies? If so; Secret Of Mana HD Remake.

If we're generally talking about FPS games, there's the Crysis series, F.E.A.R. 2, Metro Redux series, Outcast Second Contact, Retro City Rampage, Stalker series.

 

[denrick]

I enjoyed the Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood.

 

[Vayra86]

Cant vote on any of these as the vast majority is exactly the same crap we saw for ten plus years with a new version number. Maybe a good title will pop up in my head but to be fair, totally burned out on this type of game... I think in terms of originality Dishonored is the only one that stands out abit.

Oh.. and Hitman, as well.