Summary
Every year has its strengths when it comes to video game launches, but 2024 will enjoy a pretty meaty legacy in the single-player game department.RPG players ate particularly well this year, but there’s something for everybody who prefers a more solitary gaming experience.
There were tons of great single-player games launched in 2024, and everyone’s list of favorites will be different. You could go and discuss that with your gamer friends, but sometimes, wouldn’t you rather just have some time to yourself with the interactive media of your choice?
The Mario & Luigi RPG series made its unexpected and triumphant return in 2024 withthe worthy successor Mario & Luigi: Brothership. This one is especially perfect for its single-player experience because you get to enjoy brotherly gameplay without the family therapy.
You play as both Mario and Luigi, with much of the same feel from the game’s classic predecessors remaining intact. Its delightful art style plays well with the dual-character gameplay, making every action pop with charm and character.
It took this long for Zelda to get a starring role in the game series so flagrantly brandishing her name, but was the wait worth it? (And no, those other ones don’t count. You know the ones.) It’s hard to justify having to wait so many years in the first place, but the eventual result is a darn good game.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom shakes up the traditional Zelda formula. Now, you’re using Zelda’s own magic in favor of the more slashy stabby format of previous games. The item duplication is a clever mechanic and it manages to carry the whole game with a surprising amount of player freedom.
Before the fifth game came out, it was hard for many players to decide if Persona 3 or Persona 4 was their personal highlight of this social dungeon-crawling series. Granted, it was still a difficult decision for many when Persona 5 came out, but Persona 3 Reload made it even harder.
A full-on remake of the PlayStation 2 classic, Persona 3 Reload takes everything you loved about the original Persona 3 (except the female main character from Persona 3 Portable, unfortunately) and makes everything all shiny and new. Combine that with gameplay additions and quality-of-life improvements, and it’s very easy to see why both versions are so beloved.
Some consider Dragon Age: The Veilguard to be a redemption for BioWare. While that seems unfair to those many players who still enjoy Mass Effect: Andromeda to this day, it’s hard to deny that the care and love put into this game absolutely shines through.
Sporting some of the best combat in a BioWare game to date, The Veilguard keeps you invested whether you’re exploring Northern Thedas or snuggling up toone of the many great romance options. It’s also just drop dead gorgeous, and yes, that includes when you’re wearing the crow helmet.
The ability to simply explore the Star Wars universe in an open-world environment has been done before, sure. But how about as a lowly Han Solo-type scoundrel with your own funny little guy as a sidekick and no lightsabers? Star Wars Outlaws is a game many Star Wars fans didn’t realize they needed.
You play as Kay Vess, a poor thief on Canto Bight who accidentally got important and it ruined everything. The planet-hopping game has you navigating the galaxy’s criminal underworld with a familiar yet cozy open-world game loop. Add in Nix, the aforementioned funny little guy, and it’s a Star Wars dream come true.
With so many great games having released in 2024, it might seem a bit weird to bring up a remaster. But Sonic X Shadow Generations is more than that. It may very well be thebest Sonic game in years.
A remaster of Sonic Generations is indeed a major part of this. But don’t forget the X. Shadow Generations, while tied to the remaster, is a completely original campaign where you play as Shadow the Hedgehog in some of the most creative and satisfying 3D gameplay seen in the entire series.
Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio really took a massive swing when they shifted the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series from its brawler roots to a full-on turn-based RPG. Perhaps the only thing more surprising than that idea was how much fans loved it.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is the second game in the series in this new style, and it’s proven once again that it was an inspired move. Navigating the Hawaii criminal underworld as best boy Ichiban Kasuga is a joy, and the series' trademark wacky humor seems to come out even more prominently in the over-the-top turn-based battles.
Everyone had one question on their mind after finishing 2020’s Final Fantasy 7 Remake: ‘Where will they go from here?’ Topping the super-tight and satisfying experience of that first game seemed nigh on impossible. But sometimes, size really does matter.
Unlike the much more linear Remake, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth goes open world. Now, you get to explore each new region at your own pace, with content bursting out at every seam. Whether you’re clearing out side quests, battling around the open zones, or enjoying your tenth straight hour ofplaying Queen’s Blood, you’re going to have a good time.
There truly was something for everyone in 2024, most notably if that someone has a real hankering for a deckbuilding roguelike using poker hands. attempt to figure out how many times that exact sequence of words was uttered in human history before Balatro came out.
Balatro is a brilliant game. Pick your deck, beat the blind, improve your deck, rinse and repeat. That might sound tedious on paper, but you’ll be singing a far more favorable tune when you realize it’s three days later and you only stopped playing because your phone died.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is like if a Persona game went to a Renaissance fair. This hefty RPG has nearly all the familiar staples you’d expect from the Persona series, from dungeons to social links (Follower Bonds in this case), but it stands all on its own.
The story and characters are where Metaphor shines, even with some great gameplay. It also includes a disclaimer stating that the developers don’t support violence against the government. So that should give you a great idea of what you’re in for.
