The Best PlayStation Game Every Year 1994 - 2024

It’s a fair criticism that Sony hasn’t done nearly enough in the last 30 years to celebrate the incredible catalogue of games and characters in their history. This is one of the many reasons God of War pips Spider-Man to the post out of the two truly stunning PlayStation exclusives in 2018.

Another is that Santa Monica Studios was given the unenviable task of pushing everything forward and delivering with gusto. The 2018 reset introduced a Kratos changed by time and experience, now located in the realm of Norse mythology, all controlled in a weightier and more precise gameplay loop… and yet, with true finesse, retained what made the prior games so engaging.

The gorgeous rendering of the world is brought to life by both its impressive sense of scale and fluid exploration as the game disguises the line between open world and linear adventure perfectly. The combat is satisfying, even moreso with the degree of control the player has over Kratos’ skillset without falling too far into complexity.

Whilst God of War’s reveal is the stuff of legend now, what’s most important is the landing and the 2018 title brought the franchise to new heights both critically and commercially. A video that should never be forgotten is director Cory Barlog’s teary reaction to the immediate love the game got on release, calling himself “so effing proud”.

As he should be. God of War 2018 is a near-masterpiece that defines the PlayStation 4.