GOTY 2025: Gamereactor's Best Adventure Game

Technically, all games are adventure games, as they take you on an adventure to another world created by the developers who've made it. Some, however, encapsulate the spirit of adventure more than others. They take you by the hand (or not, in the case of one entry on this list) and lead you along the path less travelled, to a place you didn't think possible. Whether it's through narrative or letting you truly feel like an explorer in some unknown region, these games make you feel like you're on an adventure.

5. Skate Story

Kickflipping off our list is a game that released very recently. Skate Story has been in development for years, and now it's finally in our hands and it does not disappoint in taking you somewhere incredibly wild. It might be a bit too conceptual for its own good at times, but Skate Story manages to draw you into a breath-taking adventure with its visuals, simple but effective gameplay, and intriguing story.

4. Atomfall

Rebellion, the studio most of us know for their Sniper Elite games, took a risk in developing Atomfall. British Fallout, most of us called it. Most of us failed to spot that the game was more closely inspired by the sci-fi adventure stories of the 20th century. Giving you a lot of freedom in how you went about the game's plot, Atomfall made you feel like you were figuring out the story of your own novel. The intrigue was high, the setting was immaculately crafted, and while the game didn't always hit its potential, there's still plenty of fondness I have spare for Atomfall. Here's hoping we can see more games like it in the future, where a cricket bat is your best offensive tool.

Dispatch

Dispatch? Number 3? Have I lost my mind? Probably, yes. Dispatch is a phenomamal game (see what I did there?) but it drops a lot of what made Telltale-like games feel like adventures. It's just so darned good it has to make this list as a real peak for the choose your own adventure genre. Major decisions feel like they matter, even if they don't always change the direction of the overall main story, and the character work is really engaging throughout. The dispatching gameplay might be hit or miss for some, but I found it incredibly engaging in its pseudo-gambling style, giving me false hope my heroes really could succeed on a 9% chance.

Hell is Us

Back when we first tried Hell is Us, the team at Rogue Factor told us they planned to return to adventure games of old with Hell is Us. You had to figure out almost everything for yourself, remembering hints and tips given by NPCs, keeping track of all the items you've picked up across the course of your adventure and thinking about when they might be useful. It's a bit like brain training in a way, but Hell is Us never made its gameplay feel like a chore. Instead, you were able to explore at your own pace, tone down the combat if you just wanted the story, and take it in one step at a time. An old school adventure that didn't just take us back to the point and click days. A shame it launched the same day as Silksong.

The Drifter

Speaking of point-and-click, we couldn't top off this list without talking about one of our favourite games of the year. The Drifter scored itself a 10 in our network review, and it has thoroughly impressed players ever since it first released back in July. This fast-paced thriller throws you into the centre of a conspiracy as you find yourself waking up seconds before you're about to be murdered. With an engrossing story, vibrant pixel art and a soundtrack that is simply honey to the ear, The Drifter manages to reach our top spot in a very competitive category this year.