35 Greatest Sci Fi Video Games in 2022
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There are thousands of sci fi videogames on the market, and no doubt any one of them are a blast and a great way to escape reality for a few hours. But if you had to really get down to brass-tacks, which of them would you say are the best sci fi experiences?
We put this list of 30 cult-classic sci fi video games of all time.
1. Doom
The original Doom was released in 1993, but its legacy lives on today as one of the most influential first person shooters ever created. The game spawned a series of sequels and spinoffs, including the popular Quake and Unreal Tournament franchises. In fact, Doom has been so successful that it inspired a whole new generation of developers to create their own sci fi shooters.
Available on literally any device.
2. Halo: Combat Evolved
When Halo first entered the market, it became THE game that everyone talked about. The protagonist, Master Chief, is one of the most recognized characters in gaming history on a level with characters such as Pikachu and Mario. You can’t go anywhere without seeing someone wearing a Spartan helmet. And now there’s even a live action movie based on the character!
Available on PC, Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One (Via Master Chief Collection)
3. Half-Life
One of the greatest science fiction stories of all time gets an awesomely fun adaptation in the form of Half-Life. This game takes place in the Black Mesa Research Facility where scientists have discovered a portal to another dimension. As Gordon Freeman, your job is to stop the Combine from taking over the world by shooting everything in sight. It’s a classic FPS experience that still holds up after all these years.
Available on PC and Playstation 2
4. Fallout
This game doesn’t just take place in post apocalyptic America, it also takes place in the far future. After some kind of nuclear war, the entire Earth is covered in radiation and mutants roam free. Fallout is set hundreds of years later and follows the story of Vault Dweller who must survive in this dangerous wasteland.
Available on PC
5. Mass Effect
If you’ve never played Mass Effect before, then you’re missing out on one of the greatest space opera adventures of all time. The game centers around Commander Shepard, a human male or female who leads a team of soldiers through the galaxy. Your goal is to complete various missions and save humanity from extinction.
6. Star Wars Battlefront II
While Star Wars isn’t exactly known for being particularly family friendly, EA managed to make a pretty good game out of it. Star Wars Battlefront II lets players control iconic characters like Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, and more. The gameplay itself is very similar to other shooter games, but what sets Battlefront apart is how well they captured the feel of the movies.
Available on PC, Xbox One, Playstation 4
7. Deus Ex
There are few things as satisfying as blowing shit up. Deus Ex gives you the chance to do just that, and does so in a way that feels realistic. Players assume the role of JC Denton, a security expert who works for an international corporation called Cyberdyne Systems. During a routine mission, Denton discovers that his company is actually responsible for creating robots that look like humans. From there, he embarks on a quest to uncover the truth behind the conspiracy.
Available on PC, Mac, and Playstation 2
8. Portal
In Portal, players take on the role of Aperture Science test subject named GLaDOS. Her job is to help train new employees at the facility while simultaneously testing them to see if they’ll fit into the workforce. However, she has her own agenda which involves making sure no one escapes the facility.
Available on PC
9. System Shock
The original System Shock was released back in 1999 and is considered to be one of the best cyberpunk games ever made. In this game, players take on the roles of four different people: Alexia, a genetically engineered super soldier; Adam, a survivor of an attack on New York City; Sarah Palmer, a reporter investigating the disappearance of her husband; and finally, the player themselves. Their goal is to escape a space station overrun with aliens and find their way off the planet.
Available on PC
10. XCOM
This turn-based strategy game puts you in charge of defending Earth against alien invaders. You have to manage your resources wisely and use them to build defenses and recruit soldiers. It’s not easy though, because the aliens can easily overwhelm you.
Available on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360
11. RimWorld
If you love survival horror games such as Resident Evil, then Rimworld will definitely scratch that itch. This indie title takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where players must survive by building a community and protecting yourself from marauders.
Available on PC
12. Into The Breach
Into The Breach is a 2D action game about saving the city from an invasion of giant creatures. While the story may seem simple, the game manages to keep things interesting throughout its campaign mode.
Available on PC and Nintendo Switch
13. Detroit Become Human
A futuristic thriller set in Detroit, Detroit Become Human follows Connor, a robot whose artificial intelligence exceeds that of any human. He becomes aware of his humanity when he meets three android “siblings” who also want to become human.
Available on PS4
14. No Man’s Sky
One of the most ambitious video games ever created, No Man’s Sky features a procedurally generated universe full of planets, lifeforms, and mysteries waiting to be discovered. The game allows players to explore these worlds at their leisure, but it doesn’t stop there. As players travel through space, they’re able to discover other sentient species, including many that are hostile to each other.
Available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One
15. Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri is a science fiction real time strategy game developed by Firaxis Studios. In this game, you play as either the Terran Confederation or the United Civilized Worlds. Your objective is to colonize a number of solar systems and establish trade routes between them.
Available on PC
16. Starbound
Starbound is an open world sandbox RPG game that lets you create your own character and embark on an adventure across randomly generated galaxies. Players can choose from a variety of races, classes, skills, weapons, armor, and more. They can even customize their characters’ appearance using thousands of items found in the galaxy.
Available on PC
17. Stellaris
Stellaris is a 4X (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate) strategy game for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and Google Chrome OS. In this game, the player controls a civilization that explores new star systems, builds outposts, researches technologies, and eventually conquers neighboring civilizations.
Available on PC, Mac, Xbox One, and PS4
18. EVE Online
EVE Online is a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG). EVE Online has been around since 1997 and has over 300,000 subscribers. In this game, players take control of their very own spaceship and engage in combat with other ships. There are currently five factions available to join: Caldari State, Gallente Federation, Minmatar Republic, Amarr Empire, and Jove Network.
Available on PC
19. Dead Space
In Dead Space, players assume the role of engineer Isaac Clarke aboard the USG Ishimura, which is investigating a derelict spacecraft. After being attacked by a Necromorph, Isaac awakens to find himself trapped inside the ship. Soon after, the crew begins to go insane due to the infection spreading throughout the vessel. It’s up to Isaac to escape the ship before it goes completely mad.
Available on PC, Xbox 360, and PS3
20. Destiny 2
Set in a distant future where humans have spread throughout the Milky Way Galaxy, Destiny is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie Studios and published by Activision. Players take on the roles of Guardians who are tasked with protecting Earth from alien enemies hailing from different factions and races.
Available on PC, Xbox 360, and PS4
21. Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order
Star Wars Jedi Fallen order is a single player action-adventure game set in the Star Wars Universe. You’ll take on the role of Cal Kestis, a former Jedi Knight turned bounty hunter. After the destruction of the Jedi Order, the Emperor has declared war against the Republic and all hope seems lost. However, a group of Force sensitive children called the Remnant lead by Galen Marek may hold the key to restoring balance to the Force.
Available on PC and PS4
22. Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime is a 3D platformer video game developed by Nintendo GameCube Productions and released by Nintendo for the GameCube console in 2002. The story follows Samus Aran, a bounty hunter working for Galactic Federation law enforcement agency, the Galactic Bureau of Police, as she investigates the disappearance of her mentor and fellow bounty hunter Ridley. She must also deal with the threat of the parasitic aliens known as Metroids.
Available on Wii U
23. The Bioshock Collection
The Bioshock collection includes two games: BioShock and its sequel BioShock 2. Both were originally released on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox consoles. They were later ported to the PC and Mac platforms.
Available on PC & Mac
24. Alien Isolation
Alien Isolation is an action horror survival video game developed by Creative Assembly and published by Sega for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Set in 1986, the player assumes the role of Amanda Ripley, daughter of Ellen Ripley, the protagonist of the Alien franchise. After the Nostromo space freighter crash lands on LV-426, Amanda is separated from the rest of her team and finds herself stranded on the planet alone.
Available on PC, PS4, Xbox One
25. The Outer Worlds
The Outer Worlds is a science fiction RPG video game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Private Division for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems. It’s like Fallout, except it’s taking place in a quasi-raypunk world where players can take on quests, fight bad guys, and explore new planets and ships.
Available on PC
26. StarCraft
StarCraft is a real time strategy video game developed by Blizzard Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts. It was initially released for MSX2 in 1988. Later versions were released for DOS, Amiga, Atari ST, Macintosh, and IBM PC compatibles. The game features three distinct races (Terran, Zerg, Protoss) that compete in one-on-one battles.
Available on PC, XBox One, Playstation 4, Mac
27. Prey
Prey is a third-person action-adventure game developed by Human Head Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks for Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. The game takes place in 2032 on a secret moon base, when the US government discovers a secret facility which they believe contains extraterrestrial technology. The player assumes the role of Morgan Yu, a security specialist sent to investigate the facility.
Available on PC,PS4,Xbox One
28. Mass Effect
Mass Effect is a series of interactive novels, comic books, graphic novels, and video games based on the Mass Effect universe created by BioWare. The first title in the series was released in 2007 for the PlayStation Portable. A second installment, titled Mass Effect 2, was released in 2008 for the same system. In 2010, the third entry, Mass Effect 3, was released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The fourth and final installment, Mass Effect Andromeda, was released in 2017 for both current-generation consoles and PC.
Available on PC, PS3, Xbox 360
29. Borderlands
Borderlands is a first-and third-person shooter video game developed by Gearbox Software and published by Take Two Interactive for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch. Players assume the roles of four Vault Hunters who are dropped into a massive open world environment and tasked with completing various missions. Borderlands features many different weapons, vehicles, enemies, bosses, and environments.
Available on PC, PS3, Xbox360, WiiU
30. Gears of War
Gears of War is a first-person shooter video game series developed by Epic Games and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The first game in the series, Gears of War, was originally released for the original Xbox console in 2006. Four sequels have been released since then: Gears of War 2 in 2008, Gears of War 3 in 2011, Gears of War Ultimate Edition in 2013, and Gears 5 in 2019.
Available on PC and Xbox 360
31. FTL Faster Than Light
Faster than light (FTL) is an indie space simulation video game developed by Subset Games and published by Devolver Digital. FTL follows a group of randomly generated human explorers as they search for habitable worlds in a galaxy filled with hostile alien lifeforms.
Available on PC
32. Titanfall
Titanfall is a multiplayer online battle arena video game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Art’s EA Partners label. The game was released worldwide on March 11, 2014 for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. Titanfall was designed from the ground up to be played using motion controllers.
Available on PC
33. Death Stranding
Death Stranding is an upcoming American science fiction horror film directed by Hideo Kojima and produced by Sony Pictures. It will star Norman Reedus, Mads Mikkelsen, Lindsay Wagner, Guillermo del Toro, Jeffrey Donovan, Léa Seydoux, and Michael Shannon. Death Stranding is set in a post-apocalyptic landscape where humans live alongside creatures called Pied Pipers. The story centers around Sam, a man searching for his wife after she disappears while investigating strange occurrences.
Available on PC and PlayStation 4
34. Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid is a stealth action-adventure video game series developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo and published by Konami. Metal Gear Solid is one of the most successful franchises in gaming history. The first game in this series was released in 1987 for MSX2 computers. The first main installment was released in 1998 for PlayStation. The latest installment is Metal Gear Survive which was released in 2018.
Available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
35. Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 is an upcoming cyberpunk role-playing video game developed by CD Projekt Red and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. It is the sequel to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and takes place several years after its events. The player controls V, a mercenary hired to assassinate or protect specific targets. The game is set in Night City, a megacity that has become a haven for criminals and mercenaries alike.
Available on PC
Science Fiction Video Games
Sci fi video games are video games that take place in a futuristic setting or involve space travel. Some of these games may feature elements of science fiction such as aliens, robots, time travel, artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, teleportation, cybernetics, and other advanced technology. Examples include the Mass Effect, Star Wars, Halo, Metroid, Deus Ex, Fallout, Half Life, System Shock, Bioshock, Portal, and more.
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