I bought my PS5 back when everyone said the shortage would never end, and I still remember refreshing that store page at 2 AM like my life depended on it. Fast forward to 2026, and I’m genuinely surprised at how much I still reach for this console over my PC. So I sat down, went through my PS5’s “recently played” list, and picked out the games that actually kept me hooked this year — not just the ones getting hype on Twitter. Fair warning: I’m not going to pretend I loved everything I played. Some of these games annoyed me. A couple made me put the controller down for a week before I picked them back up. That’s part of the fun.
Why I Still Love My PS5 in 2026?
I switch between my PC and PS5 constantly, and I keep coming back to the PS5 for one simple reason: I don’t have to think about anything. I press the power button, the game loads before I even sit properly on the couch, and I’m playing. My SSD load times spoiled me so badly that I got annoyed at my own PC last month for taking twelve seconds to load a save file. The DualSense also finally feels like it’s earning its keep. A few games below actually use the haptics well instead of just buzzing randomly every time you walk on grass.
Action & Adventure Games I Played.
007 First Light.
I went into this expecting another forgettable licensed shooter, honestly. I’ve been burned by Bond games before. But IO Interactive clearly poured the same care into this that they put into Hitman, and I ended up replaying two missions just to see if I could pull off a fully stealth run. I couldn’t, by the way. I got spotted both times and had to shoot my way out, which somehow still felt satisfying.
Romeo is a Dead Man.
My friend told me to skip this one, and I’m glad I didn’t listen to him. Playing an undead FBI agent sounds ridiculous on paper, and it is, but the combat system pulled me in way more than I expected. There’s a mechanic they call the “Bastard” system that rewards you for improvising instead of spamming the same combo, and I found myself laughing out loud at a couple of the boss fights because of how over-the-top they got. My one complaint: the ending rushed itself. I wanted another two or three hours before the credits rolled.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
I’ll be honest, I almost didn’t buy this because the first game frustrated me at times. But I picked it up during
a slow week and ended up playing it for four hours straight without realizing how late it had gotten. It’s still weird, it’s still slow in places, and I still don’t fully understand half the lore, but something about carrying packages across a broken world hit differently this time.
RPGs That Ate My Free Time
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
This is the game I keep telling everyone to buy. I picked it up on a whim after seeing a clip online, and I
ended up canceling plans two weekends in a row because I didn’t want to stop playing. The combat mixes turn-based strategy with real-time dodges, so I actually had to pay attention instead of zoning out during battles like I do in most RPGs. I also just stood around in a few areas taking screenshots because the world looked that good.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink
I went in skeptical since I’ve never touched the mobile game this is based on, and I came out of it wanting to
farm gear at 1 AM on a work night. The combat clicked with me faster than I expected, and once the July expansion, Endless Ragnarok, dropped, I found myself back in it for another week.
Nioh 3
I died. A lot. I’m not too proud to admit that. Team Ninja changed the structure this time to a more open- field design instead of picking missions from a menu, and it made exploring feel way less like a chore. I still rage-quit once after a boss killed me for the ninth time in a row, but I came back the next day and beat him on my first try, which felt incredible.
Racing & Multiplayer
Forza Horizon 6
I mostly play this when I don’t want to think. I put on a podcast, drive around the map, and don’t worry about winning races. The formula hasn’t changed much since 2012, but I don’t need it to. Sometimes I just want pretty cars and open roads.
Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising
I’m not usually a fighting game person — I lose to my younger brother every single time we play Tekken — but this one felt more forgiving while I learned the basics. I actually won a few matches against him for once, which felt like a personal victory more than anything about the game itself.
Family-Friendly Pick
Big Hops
My niece visited last month, and I put this on just to keep her entertained for an hour. We ended up playing it together for the whole afternoon. It’s simple, colorful, and forgiving enough that she didn’t get frustrated, and I didn’t get bored watching her play either.
PS5 Pro Enhanced Games
I don’t own a PS5 Pro myself, but I checked, andgames like 007 First Light, Nioh 3, and Death Stranding 2 all carry the “PS5 Pro Enhanced” tag. If you’ve got the Pro, you’ll get better resolution and steadier frame rates on these. Worth checking the store page before you buy if that matters to you.
What I’d Recommend Based on Your Mood
Want a good story? Death Stranding 2 or 007 FirstLight
Want to lose track of time in an RPG? Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 or Granblue Fantasy: Relink
Want to punch something? Romeo is a Dead Man or Nioh.
Just want to zone out? Forza Horizon 6
Older Games I Still Went Back To
I also revisited Astro Bot this year because a friend hadn’t played it yet and I wanted an excuse to replay it myself. It’s still one of the most purely fun games I own — no frustration, just good design from start to finish.
I finally finished God of War Ragnarok too, years after everyone else apparently did. I don’t know what took me so long. It’s aged incredibly well, and I regret waiting this long to play it.
I tried Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined expecting a quick playthrough and quickly realized this is not a quick game. It’s slow, old-school, and I put it down for a month before coming back to it. Worth it if you’re patient.
A Few Things I Learned the Hard Way
About Buying Games
I’ve wasted money buying games at full price that showed up on PS Plus Extra two months later. Lesson learned. I now wait for seasonal sales unless I’m genuinely desperate to play something day one. I also started buying physical copies of games I really care about, since Sony’s cutting back on disc production going forward, and I don’t want to regret not grabbing a copy later.
Questions People Keep Asking Me
What’s the one PS5 game I’d tell someone to buy right now?
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, no hesitation. I’ve recommended it to four different friends already.
Do these run better on PS5 Pro?
For the Pro Enhanced ones, yes — better resolution and smoother frame rates. I’ve heard this from friends who own one; I can’t confirm it myself since I don’t have a Pro.
What should a beginner start with?
Big Hops, easily. Watching my niece pick it up in minutes told me everything I needed to know.
Should I play the first Death Stranding before the sequel?
Please do. I tried explaining the plot to my roommatewithout the context of the first game, and it did not go well.
Final Thoughts
Looking back at everything I played this year, I honestly can’t remember a year where I disliked this little. Even the games that frustrated me still pulled me back in eventually. If I had to pick just one game to shove into someone’s hands right now, it’s Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 — followed closely by Nioh 3 if they’d rather punch things than think about turn-based strategy. Let me know what you end up playing. I’m always looking for an excuse to start something new. This is based on my own time with these games this year — your experience might differ depending on your taste, your setup, or honestly just your patience for slow starts.
Last updated July 25, 2026.
