Awards season is here again, and we’d like to take this opportunity to present the Best of 2025 PlayStation titles, courtesy of our staff at Twisted Voxel.
2025 has been a relatively weak year for PlayStation exclusives, with only two first-party releases from Sony Interactive Entertainment a handful of console exclusive third-party titles. Luckily, they’re among the standout games of the year. For this list, we’ve focused on picking the best of these releases that could only be experienced on a PlayStation console in the year 2025.
5. Sword of the Sea
Sword of the Sea earns a place on this list by delivering a rare kind of experiential purity. Developed by Giant Squid, the studio behind Abzu and The Pathless, the game transforms movement itself into its primary language. Surfing across vast dunes, ruined landscapes, and flowing environments feels less like traversal and more like expression, with momentum, rhythm, and player intuition driving every moment. There is a meditative quality to its design, but it’s paired with an increasing sense of mastery as players learn to read terrain and maintain flow. The audiovisual presentation reinforces this philosophy, using bold color palettes, cinematic camera work, and an evocative score to create a sense of scale and wonder without relying on traditional storytelling.
4. Lumines Arise
Lumines Arise secures its spot by proving that refinement, when done with care, can be just as powerful as reinvention. Enhance Games builds on the iconic rhythm-puzzle foundation of the series with subtle but impactful additions, most notably the Burst system, which adds a strategic layer without disrupting the core flow. The familiar satisfaction of planning clears around the sweeping timeline remains intact, while chain blocks and expanded modes encourage deeper board control and long-term thinking. Its Journey mode highlights the importance of endurance and consistency, Challenge and Mission modes sharpen mastery, and competitive play remains fast and readable. What truly elevates Lumines Arise, however, is its audiovisual craftsmanship. Music, visuals, and gameplay remain inseparable, with every action feeding directly into sound and motion.
3. Dispatch
Dispatch stands out as one of the year’s strongest narrative-driven experiences by fully embracing its identity as interactive television. AdHoc Studio delivers a sharply written, character-driven story focused on Robert Robertson, a fallen superhero turned dispatcher managing a dysfunctional team of reformed villains. Its brilliance lies not in massive branching plots, but in how dialogue choices, team management, and mission assignments subtly reshape relationships and tone. The superhero office setting feels alive thanks to consistent humor, sincere writing and excellent performances, while the management layer reinforces the narrative instead of distracting from it.
2. Ghost of Yotei
Ghost of Yotei stands out as a PlayStation title in 2025 by taking the core strengths of its predecessor and refining them into a more focused and atmospheric experience. Rather than reinforcing themes of honor and legacy in the sequel, Sucker Punch delivers a more personal and captivating tale of revenge. The combat system is meaningfully overhauled with weapon and skill variety, freeing it from the repetitive nature of battles in Ghost of Tsushima. Meanwhile, the open-world design feels less checklist-driven and more curated. Every duel, vista, and story beat serves the game’s tone, resulting in an experience that values mood and intention over excess.
1. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach earns the top spot as a more confident sequel that deepens its themes of connection, loss, and responsibility. The moment-to-moment traversal feels smoother and more intuitive, while the refined and expanded combat gives players greater agency in how they survive its eerily hostile world. Kojima Productions succeeds in delivering a more engaging plot and cast of characters, thanks to stronger character arcs and more deliberate pacing in the sequel.
