The Absolute Best Steam Games for 2026

Journey to the West is a classic Chinese story that has been adapted in many ways, including Dragon Ball. Therefore, it is understandable that the tale has received yet another video game adaptation. And it’s a good one. One of the most exciting recent games to emerge from China, Wukong’s unique and imaginative setting offers a distinct flavor compared with typical blockbuster titles. But at the core of the journey are excellent melee and magic combat abilities, as well as bosses that put those abilities to the test. That’s the kind of action that gamers around the world can enjoy.

The latest entry in Blizzard’s seminal action-RPG series resurrects the bloody and grim visual flair that balances the cartoon-like fantasy. Diablo IV expands the familiar loot-grinding mechanics with massive, demon-filled zones. In terms of character builds, there’s more creativity than ever; a necromancer battles a lot differently than a rogue, for example. On top of that, everything regarding how the game plays—be it with a controller or classic clicking—activates every pleasure center in the brain and keeps you coming back for one more run.

If you hate politics-fueled video games, don’t play Disco Elysium – The Final Cut. This detective-RPG isn’t necessarily a manifesto, but it says something. Disco Elysium delivers many thoughtful political criticisms, but don’t mistake it for ho-hum centrism. The game sides with working people and their movements, despite asking you to play as police officers on the other end of that spectrum. The excellent RPG mechanics and well-crafted world would be impressive no matter the story, but Disco Elysium’s themes make it one of the best PC games that you should play right now.

It was only a matter of time before Doom fully embraced its bloody medieval influences. The latest installment in the miraculously great modern Doom saga, Doom: The Dark Ages is a gnarly prequel to the current games. You still shoot laser guns and fight cyborg demons, but you also wear a fur cape and ride a flying dragon. Your most versatile weapon is a trusty shield. What makes the Dark Ages shine, though, is a more flexible and improvisational approach to the bone-crunching combat, so anyone can enjoy ripping and tearing.

Dota 2, the esports staple, is the very definition of easy to learn, hard to master. The free-to-play, multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game tasks you with selecting one of more than 100 playable Heroes to take to the battlefield, utilizing the character’s unique abilities, play style, and attributes to help your team achieve victory. Dota 2 lacks Paragon’s graphical flair and doesn’t have Smite’s numerous unique play modes, but it is the best and most balanced MOBA on Steam.

There’s more to the Elder Scrolls than just Skyrim. Back in 2006, Oblivion blew gamers’ minds by offering a vast fantasy world to explore, filled with quests to tackle and magic to master. This loving remaster preserves the original RPG experience, including some amusing bugs, but significantly improves the visuals, allowing Oblivion to shine once again. 

Fire Pro Wrestling World began life as a promising Steam Early Access title, but upon its official release, Spike Chunsoft’s “sports” game morphed into one of the most addictive wrasslin’ titles to grace any platform. An excellent return to form after the disappointing, avatar-based, Xbox 360-exclusive Fire Pro Wrestling, World has all of the elements that comprise a great Fire Pro game: robust creation tools, a ridiculously deep move set, MMA rules, cage fighting, gimmick matches, and tight controls and match pacing. Online play, Steam Workshop integration for uploading and downloading content, and optional New Japan Pro Wrestling DLC make Fire Pro Wrestling World the best in its series.

After years of teasing and promises, Square Enix finally delivered a remake of the most beloved game in the legendary Final Fantasy franchise. And Final Fantasy VII was worth the wait. Final Fantasy VII Remake expands the original game’s opening Midgar chapters into a cyberpunk-style, action-RPG epic that blends exciting combat with exquisite worldbuilding. Cloud, Barret, Tifa, Aerith, and Sephiroth have never felt more alive. All this sets up a sequel with plot elements that even die-hard fans can’t predict.

Traditional Gears of War games are cover-based shooters that put you in the boots of muscled soldiers who defend humanity from the mutant horde called the Locust. The series injects brutal weaponry into the third-person shooting action, such as chainsaw-assault guns and spear-tipped rifles, that can be used to melee or blast the Locust Horde into bloody lumps. Miraculously, Gears Tactics—the franchise’s first venture into the turn-based, strategy genre—preserves many series hallmarks, including wild melee executions, cover-heavy environments, and waves of overaggressive enemies. Yet, the new tactical elements add to the action in wonderfully crafted ways.

The Guilty Gear series reigns supreme as the king of anime-style fighting games, thanks to its stunning art style and a rich, demanding combat system. Unfortunately, the game’s many systems proved inaccessible to casual players—until now. With Strive, developer Arc System Works streamlines Guilty Gear’s fighting to make it more newcomer-friendly, while retaining the older games’ creative richness. Strive comes with fewer extra modes than its predecessors, but there is a lot to love in this PC game, including astounding visuals, impressive character play styles, lag-free online play courtesy of top-tier, rollback netcode, and an amazing soundtrack. Strive is an approachable series entry that shakes up the Guilty Gear formula in the best ways possible.

It seemed impossible to top Hades, one of the greatest indie games of all time. It was an unexpected yet masterful blend of fast-paced action and rich storytelling that took full advantage of roguelike repetition. But Hades II found a way to improve on that mythic predecessor. The new story introduces incredibly cool witchcraft elements into the ancient Greek setting, and the gameplay follows that theme with magic-based combat and unlockable spells for making further progress. But best of all, with two separate paths to attempt again and again, Hades II isn’t just better than the iconic original; it’s twice as big.

The King of Fighters XV features a vast roster comprising a diverse array of characters from SNK’s extensive history. The snappy 2D battles come to life with colorful, ray-traced 3D graphics, and the fighting system itself fosters creativity. Rollback netcode, tournaments, and spectator modes enhance the online experience.

Want to beat baddies in comic book fashion? Marvel Cosmic Invasion is an intergalactic adventure starring Captain America, Spider-Man, Wolverine, and other superheroes who battle the conquering forces of Annihilus. Unlike other beat ’em up games, Marvel Cosmic Invasion lets you swap characters in the middle of an attack to create big combos.

Sony knew that its open-world Spider-Man game was way too good to stay locked to PlayStation consoles. If you’re looking for an awesome superhero adventure, you can’t do much better than this. We love swinging through the open-world Manhattan and webbing up supervillains. The comic book story even rivals some Spider-Man films. This PC remaster includes the original PlayStation 4 game, along with its DLC.

Big Boss, the world’s greatest soldier, returns to the battlefield after a nine-year coma in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. You scout, sneak, and fight your way across military installations in Afghanistan and Africa, as you help Big Boss slake his lust for revenge against the villainous Skull Face. In terms of gameplay, you construct the infamous Mother Base, kidnap and recruit soldiers from the field, loot valuable supplies, and develop new weaponry as you explore two massive open-world environments. Phantom Pain is a thrilling stealth-action game, but its troubled development is apparent in some areas.

Microsoft is mostly known for realistic games starring space marines and fast cars, but every now and then, the company releases family-friendly, mascot-driven platformers. Ori and the Will of the Wisps falls squarely into the latter category. The sequel to Ori and the Blind Forest, Will of the Wisps impresses with more timeless polish and craft. The game features a darkly beautiful world comprised of thought-provoking levels, providing you with the tools to navigate through the environments with unparalleled ease.

Until recently, even Monster Hunter’s most rabid fans admitted that there’s a certain level of gameplay jank; a jankiness that turned many casual players away. But with Monster Hunter World, Capcom enhanced animations, streamlined gameplay, and made tons of quality-of-life adjustments. The changes worked in a big way. Tracking and battling huge, snarling beasts with a variety of crafted armor and weaponry is an absolute joy, especially while doing so with friends in multiplayer mode.

Monster Hunter Rise makes the jump from Nintendo Switch to PC, delivering excellent, creature-killing action that tops 100 frames per second. Like its console counterpart, Rise on PC features new Yokai-inspired monsters, fresh mobility options, and large hunting zones packed with collectible goodies for upgrading your custom warrior. The Capcom-developed title lacks cross-save and cross-platform support, but it’s still one of the best multiplayer action-RPGs to come along in some time.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a violent story about the death of the Old West. In it, you control Arthur Morgan, a man who belongs to an outlaw group and is disillusioned by the criminal lifestyle. Featuring a gripping narrative, Red Dead Redemption 2 amazes with its beautiful graphics, multitude of optional quests, and ever-updated online mode.

Resident Evil 4 is one of the greatest games ever made. It reinvented the Resident Evil franchise, the survival horror genre, and the third-person shooter category all at once. So how does the remake fare? In short, it’s fantastic! Although not as transformative as the recent Resident Evil 2 remake, the Resident Evil 4 remake delivers a gorgeous return trip to the parasite-infested rural European village. As agent Leon S. Kennedy, you must rescue the president’s daughter while blasting and thrashing the cultists who stand in your way.

The LittleBigPlanet titles are all about letting you make your own games with the powerful, accessible level editor. However, the heroic Sackboy character became a beloved mascot in his own right. So if you just want some well-crafted Sackboy platforming action, Sackboy: A Big Adventure is the game for you. While not a fully open 3D platformer, Sackboy: A Big Adventure gives you wide and clever levels to hop through as you attempt to reach the end. Stages are expertly designed with charming visuals wherever you turn. Play alone or with friends in online or local multiplayer.

With Returnal, developer Housemarque traded retro shoot ’em ups for brutally hard roguelike third-person shooters. You live, die, and live again as you fight aliens in this ethereal and ever-changing sci-fi landscape. Returnal lets you build a creative arsenal, all with tight controls. Still, you must master its gunplay, as the game is challenging and kicks you back to the beginning whenever you lose.

Silent Hill continues its long reemergence from the dead. Not a remake, Silent Hill f is an excellent and wholly original game in the acclaimed survival horror franchise. This new, dreadful tale follows a high school student in 1960s Japan, and fully embraces the unique J-horror aesthetic. Along with all the scares, Silent Hill f dives into deeper themes of violence and misogyny. It’s a terrific and absolutely terrifying descent into madness.

As a game, South of Midnight is a fine action-adventure experience, the kind of game that flourished during the PlayStation 2 era. In it, you hop between arena-based combat encounters, simple environmental puzzles, and smooth platforming sequences. But what truly elevates South of Midnight into one of the best and most unique games you’ll play is its tremendous sense of place. Everything from the writing to the artwork to the soundtrack transports you into an engrossing vision of American Deep South folklore. It’s a game overflowing with soul.

Street Fighter 6 removes all doubt that the original fighting game franchise is still one of the very best. So whether you’ve been rocking Ryu since 1991 or want to step into the ring for the first time, Street Fighter 6 doesn’t disappoint. New mechanics powered by the Drive Gauge open up flashy offensive and defensive comeback possibilities. Modern control schemes simplify complex actions for newcomers, while veterans can opt for classic arcade inputs. An expansive single-player mode turns the series into a spiritual successor to Capcom’s beat ’em up games. Plus, a wide array of multiplayer modes lets you truly test your skills against all challengers.

Metalhead Software’s baseball title captures what makes the sport an internationally beloved game, as it inserts you into a world where homers go deep, cartoony showboats flex their super-sized biceps, and pitcher-batter match-ups are tense games of cat and mouse. Super Mega Baseball 3 boasts numerous on-field improvements, strategy-enhancing player traits, and gameplay modes for both default and custom ball clubs that push the series deeper into simulation territory.

Tekken 7, like the main-line Tekken games that came before it, is a tale of fathers and sons attempting to murder each other to purge the Mishima clan of the Devil Gene, a magical DNA strand that transforms certain people into hellspawn. Touted as the conclusion of the Mishima drama, Tekken 7 reveals secrets and leaves cliffhangers, thus simultaneously answering long-standing questions and prompting the fan base to ask new ones. Thankfully, the wonderfully ridiculous tale is bolstered by some of the best mechanics featured in contemporary fighting games, with the new Power Crush, Rage Arts, and Rage Drive attacks deftly blending into the established mix.

Inspired by classic Akira Kurosawa films, this sidescroller features an unbelievably cinematic presentation, complete with a black-and-white color palette. Satisfying combat gives your hands something to do while your eyes drink in the scenery. Excellent voice acting and sound design round out this thoughtful package.

UFO 50 isn’t just one awesome indie game; it’s an entire incredible anthology developed by some of indie gaming’s best and brightest. Some UFO 50 games are intentional retro throwbacks. Other games use retro graphics with modern and experimental game design ideas. There’s even a fascinating underlying backstory about the fictional console these games were supposedly developed for. And the overall quality is shockingly, consistently high for something so vast and varied.

In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Geralt grips his swords one last time in search of his surrogate daughter, Ciri. The game design techniques employed by developer CD Projekt Red made the third mainline Witcher game one of the best RPGs ever crafted. The combat is more intuitive than previous series installments, featuring improved spell-casting capabilities, smoother evasion, and better item-crafting abilities. In addition, Wild Hunt is a remarkably vast game world filled with powerful weapons, valuable collectible materials, labyrinthine dungeons, and numerous monsters to slay. It’s well written and features excellent voice work, too.

Just based on screenshots, you couldn’t tell that Vampire Survivors was one of the best PC games. It looks like a mess of sprites and pixels haphazardly thrown on the screen. But once you start playing this indie sensation, you can’t escape its clutches. Vampire Survivors plays a bit like a shoot ‘em up, only instead of moving and shooting, you only control movement. You only have to worry about safe positioning as your character shoots automatically. The longer you last, the more you level up and the crazier your automatic weapons become. In time, all enemies around you crumble to dust.