As the current console generation winds down with few games scheduled for release between now and November, it’s the perfect time to revisit, or even discover for the first time, the very best exclusive games of the PlayStation 4. With Ghost of Tsushima capping off a long list of iconic games, Sony’s exclusive line-up arguably remains unrivaled.
For the best part of a decade, Sony has introduced gamers to new and exciting heroes, resurrected the best antiheroes, and revealed some breathtaking worlds bound to the PlayStation 4. Without these visionary games, players would be left with nothing more than annual sports games and first-person shooters.
10 Uncharted: Lost Legacy - 84
Uncharted: Lost Legacy was completely unexpected at the time it was announced, as it was right off the heels of Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, which took over four years to make. Lost Legacy doesn’t feature any of the main characters of Uncharted, not even the charismatic protagonist Nathan Drake, and this time around it’s a much shorter adventure. However, it still received copious amounts of praise for allowing players more freedom and having a compelling story, despite the absence of the adorable Sully and stern Elena.
9 Ratchet & Clank - 85
Though Ratchet & Clank is often unfairly measured against another child-friendly buddy platformer, Jak & Daxter, which is also a PlayStation exclusive series, R&C stands on its own. The reason the only Ratchet & Clank release of this generation is rated so highly isn’t just because of its use of platformer archetypes such as relentless puns and linear level designs, but because the game, a remake of the original, is full of whimsy and is a completely joyful experience.
8 Marvel’s Spider-Man - 87
After a ton of multi-platform Spider-Man games that received tepid reviews, all imitating the now classic Spider-Man 2 from the PlayStation 2 era, the web slinger was in dire need of something fresh. Though the game had a lot of help from the source material, as the hero’s villains are so colorful and spectacular, Marvel’s Spider-Man pulled of the impossible, becoming superior to Spider-Man 2 and even the best ever Spider-Man game.
Along with the villains, the game’s success is owed to the combat system (borrowed heavily from Batman: Arkham Asylum) and it’s gripping narrative.
7 Final Fantasy VII Remake - 88
Though Final Fantasy VII is often referred to as a perfect game, it didn’t stop fans from going crazy with excitement when the remake was announced. Looking back at the original, the game looks much worse than gamers remember, which spawned some of the funniest comparison memes of the original and the remake. The remake turned out great as the characters no longer look like Lego, and it sold millions of copies within days.
6 Horizon: Zero Dawn - 89
Horizon: Zero Dawn is the full package, it offers the best graphics and gameplay the PS4 has to offer, and though it might sound hyperbolic, the game is truly awe inspiring. The best thing about Horizon: Zero Dawn, and the primary reason why it has sold so many copies, is because it is both easy to digest and the world is incredibly dense without being overwhelming. The world of Zero Dawn is so vast that there are still secrets in the game that players have yet to find.
5 Astro Bot: Rescue Mission - 90
What might be the most surprising game with such high critical acclaim is Astro Bot: Rescue Mission, a game that makes the best use out of PlayStation VR over any other game, and that includes Iron Man VR. At face value, the gameplay and physics work just like any other platformer would, but what makes Astro Bot different to other platformers is that not only do players control Astro Bot, but they also play a role in the level themselves. The game takes the ingenuity of Little Big Planet and adapts it for Virtual Reality.
4 Shadow Of The Colossus - 91
The PlayStation 4 remake of Shadow of the Colossus is undoubtedly one of the most critically acclaimed games of the PS4, Just as the PS3 remake was ten years ago, just like the original PS2 version was 15 years ago, and just like the inevitable PS5 remake will be in five years time. Yeah, there have been a lot of versions of this game, but there’s no question that the PS4 remake is the ultimate version of them all. Bluepoint Games lovingly rebuilt the game from scratch and the gigantic colossi are now more detailed than ever, with each single strand of hair being as clear as each blade of grass.
3 Bloodborne - 92
It’s extremely rare when a spin-off becomes more successful than the original source material. Super Mario was in Donkey Kong before the character became a billion dollar mascot for Nintendo, and Valve somehow pulled off a game better than Half-Life with it’s spin-off, Portal, and now Bloodborne joins the ranks, being the successor to Dark Souls. Bloodborne is haunting, painstakingly beautiful, and horrifying. It’s so beloved that fans have been awaiting a sequel for years.
2 Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End - 93
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End was exactly that, it was the end of Nathan Drake’s story that fans had been committed to for 10 years and four universally acclaimed games. Because the series is so close to so many PlayStation 4 gamers’ hearts, they may have felt sentimental about the franchise’s end, which led to being one of the highest rated video games of all-time.
But whether the scores are inflated or not, there’s no denying that A Thief’s End features the best gameplay of any Uncharted and is better written than most Hollywood movies.
1 God Of War - 95
God of War has outlasted three console generations, as his first outing dates back to the PS2 era, but though the basic themes remain the same, Kratos’ journey has come along way, as the franchise has developed in to a more cinematic event than the arcade-type slash-em up that the franchise began as. And now that Kratos is full of wisdom and compassion, the masculine and fearful god has become an unpredicted mascot of this generation and PlayStation’s best hero.