Best Arcade Games on PS5

10. Riders Republic (PS5)

• 6.57
• Review 7/10
• Profile

Publisher: Ubisoft / Developer: Ubisoft Annecy

Release Date: 28th Oct 2021 (USA) / 28th Oct 2021 (UK/EU)

A game that brings something a little different to the sports genre on the PS5, Riders Republic is a Ubisoft open world game with a cycling/skiing/wingsuiting skin. A massively multiplayer online sandbox, filled with both silly and serious challenges, this game is colossal in scale – something it underpins with its outrageous Mass Race competitions. It can look a little ugly and its too-cool-for-school style will grate, but cycling down mountains at 100kmph is still an exhilarating experience.

9. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania (PS5)

• 6.75
• Review 6/10
• Profile

Publisher: SEGA / Developer: Yakuza Studio

Release Date: 5th Oct 2021 (USA) / 5th Oct 2021 (UK/EU)

As gameplay concepts go, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania is not especially complex. This remaster of Super Monkey Ball Deluxe – itself a compilation of Super Monkey Ball and Super Monkey Ball 2’s impressive 300 stages – sees you rolling apes through increasingly challenging environments, collecting bananas and attempting to reach the goal in record time. While this is unquestionably entertaining, the real longevity comes from the Mini Games, which can be played by up to four players, and span everything from soccer through to baseball and much, much more. It’s vibrant and accessible, with a ton of depth – the perfect arcade party game, then.

8. DIRT 5 (PS5)

• 7.04
• Review 8/10
• Profile

Publisher: Codemasters / Developer: Codemasters

Release Date: 12th Nov 2020 (USA) / 19th Nov 2020 (UK/EU)

DIRT 5 comes from a Codemasters team made up of many Evolution Studios alumni, giving this off-road racer a slight MotorStorm flavour. The festival vibes are alive and well here, with colourful presentation and a great soundtrack providing the background for a varied and fun racing calendar. Unlike its DiRT Rally cousins, this game is unabashedly arcadey, putting the emphasis on sliding sideways through the mud, across the ice, and into clouds of dust. An unintrusive storyline featuring characters voiced by Nolan North and Troy Baker carries you through the single player, while a level editor and some neat multiplayer modes are waiting for you too. A slick, well presented racing game with real energy.

7. Hot Wheels Unleashed (PS5)

• 7.11
• Review 7/10
• Profile

Publisher: Milestone / Developer: Milestone

Release Date: 30th Sep 2021 (USA) / 30th Sep 2021 (UK/EU)

Available On:

If you've ever owned a toy car or two, Hot Wheels Unleashed will hold some appeal. Coming from Milestone, the studio known for its motorbike racing titles like MotoGP and RIDE, this game sees the Italian team go in a brand new direction. This is a colourful arcade racer, pitting those die-cast vehicles against each other on that famous bright orange track across various settings. The handling is excellent and provides some surprisingly competitive and gratifying racing, while the courses are treacherous, winding things that see you driving on the ceiling and through the air. The game is impressively robust too, with a big campaign, split-screen and online multiplayer, a full track editor, and hundreds of cars to collect. If you're a fan of Hot Wheels, or just arcade racing games generally, this is worth checking out.

6. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 (PS5)

• 7.18
• Review 8/10
• Profile

Publisher: SEGA / Developer: Sonic Team

Release Date: 8th Dec 2020 (USA) / 8th Dec 2020 (UK/EU)

Two of the industry’s puzzle titans clash in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, the sequel to SEGA’s absurdly addictive block-stacking mash-up. With support for up to four different players, and a variety of curiously compelling modes – including the bonkers Fusion, which sees you managing a board of Tetraminos and Puyos simultaneously – this vibrant outing will have you hooked from the very first line you clear. If you’re a fan of single player campaigns, then there’s even a cute story you can play through, and you can collect cards to boost your abilities in the brand new Skill Battle mode.

5. OlliOlli World (PS5)

• 7.57
• Review 8/10
• Profile

Publisher: Private Division / Developer: Roll7

Release Date: 8th Feb 2022 (USA) / 8th Feb 2022 (UK/EU)

Available On: PS+ Essential (Until 6th Mar 2023)

OlliOlli World is the third entry in Roll7's side-scrolling skateboarding series, and it takes things in a brilliant new direction. The gameplay is about the same, tasking you with pulling off tricks with the left stick as you speed through each level. However, the addictive, score-chasing core that keeps you hooked is wrapped in new layers that make it far more appealing. A cel-shaded look is complemented by a chilled out soundtrack and an eclectic range of characters, making for far more pleasant presentation. Full customisation gives you much more control of your skater's look, and asynchronous multiplayer gives you a practically limitless supply of stages to master. A compulsive and fun-loving take on the extreme sport.

4. Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate (PS5)

• 7.92
• Profile

Publisher: Warner Bros / Developer: NetherRealm Studios

Release Date: 17th Nov 2020 (USA) / 17th Nov 2020 (UK/EU)

Available On: PS+ Extra

There’s a snobbery among enthusiasts that suggests Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate, without tightly animated sprites and mind-boggling button combos, is a lesser fighting title. Be that as it may, few brawlers have the sheer scope and scale of what’s on display here. With an ever-rotating ladder of inventive towers to tackle, a sprawling single player campaign, and an RPG-inspired loot system that lets you tailor all of the title’s characters to your tastes, NetherRealm Studios may not have produced an audience-attracting e-sport here, but it has delivered a damn good time.

3. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (PS5)

• 7.95
• Review 8/10
• Profile

Publisher: Activision / Developer: Vicarious Visions

Release Date: 26th Mar 2021 (USA) / 26th Mar 2021 (UK/EU)

Available On:

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 is a brilliant remake of two incredibly impactful games. The skateboarding series might have been scraping its knees for a while, but this new version puts it right on track, updating the PS1 classics to modern standards while keeping that old-school, arcadey magic alive. The PS5 version is a great update, too, enhancing the title with super smooth performance, 4K resolution, reduced loading, and some subtle usage of DualSense's features. If you're a long-time fan, this is pure joy.

2. Guilty Gear Strive (PS5)

• 8.15
• Review 9/10
• Profile

Publisher: Arc System Works / Developer: Arc System Works

Release Date: 11th Jun 2021 (USA) / 11th Jun 2021 (UK/EU)

The PS5's first native fighting game has set the bar very, very high. Guilty Gear Strive is a superb brawler, bolstered by jaw-dropping visuals and the best online netcode that we've ever experienced in a fighting game. A relatively small but brilliantly diverse character roster allows for a deep and hugely rewarding experience, while accessible gameplay mechanics on a base level pave the way for new players. A stunning beat-'em-up backed by an incredible heavy rock soundtrack.

1. Returnal (PS5)

• 8.69
• Review 9/10
• Profile

Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment / Developer: Housemarque

Release Date: 30th Apr 2021 (USA) / 30th Apr 2021 (UK/EU)

Available On: PS+ Extra

Not that it needed to, but with Returnal, Housemarque has proven itself an incredibly capable studio. This PS5 exclusive is a frantic, ultra-tight third person shooter dressed up with some rogue-like elements to add variety and unpredictability to the mix, and the result is wonderful.

Trapped in a loop on a hostile alien world, Selene is forced to relive her fateful crash landing each time she dies. There's an amazing sense of accomplishment as you slowly progress through challenging boss encounters and explore six diverse environments full of randomised weapons, perks, and power-ups. It feels amazing to play, especially with amazing support for the DualSense's features, and the addictive gameplay is complemented by an enigmatic story that will leave you guessing.

The best part is that's just the start. A slew of additional modes flesh out Returnal, giving you a few extra ways to play when you're done with the single player campaign. The daily challenge mode provides all players with a fixed loadout and room layouts, with the goal of amassing the highest score possible by exploring and playing skilfully. Beyond that is the Tower of Sisyphus, an endless arcade mode that similarly tasks you with getting the highest score you can, only there's more of a sense of urgency. You're rewarded not just for skilled play but for fast play — your multiplier will start to tick down if you loiter for too long. The Tower also contains additional story, adding more layers to the mysterious narrative the main game offers.

Finally, there's two-player online co-op. This allows you to join or invite another player and go through the main campaign with a companion, potentially alleviating some of the challenge. While it isn't the primary focus of Returnal, the co-op works splendidly; resources are shared between you, forcing you to make decisions on who gets what, and a revival mechanic lets you bring each other back into the fight. It's just as much fun taking on the world of Atropos with a friend as it is alone, if not more so.

Whether you're in it for the world class gameplay, the atmospheric sci-fi setting, the intentionally mysterious story, or the variety of extra modes, Returnal is among the most robust, rewarding, and addictive games on PS5.