The best PC games to play right now
Make the most of your powerful gaming PC with these top titles!
2023 has been a knockout year for PC games, and we've got the best from the past and present to play right now.
It has, unfortunately, been an extremely tough year for the industry, too - with an unprecedented number of layoffs, as detailed by GamesIndustry.biz.
Hopefully, these fantastic developers can quickly find new reliable positions and we can see them go on to create even more great games without fear of losing their jobs.
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If you're curious to see how much time you've sunk into PC gaming, you can check out your Steam Year in Review – provided you use the service.
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If you're not relegated to just PC, you can also check out the best VR games, Xbox games, PlayStation games and Nintendo Switch games so that you don't miss a single exclusive!
There are plenty more upcoming releases, too, so it doesn't look like we'll be short of anything new to play any time soon. But in the here and now, read on to see what awaits you right now!
The best PC games to play
The PC catalogue stretches back decades upon decades, and we couldn't possibly begin to list all of the best ones from over the years, but below we have what we think are some of the top titles from this year and recent memory.
We have a diverse list of games, including turn-based RPGs, racing games, esports titles and indie gems. No matter what your preference is, we've got something for you!
Baldur's Gate 3
This should come as no surprise given how many awards Baldur's Gate 3 picked up at the Golden Joysticks and The Game Awards 2023.
Baldur's Gate 3 is a CRPG game set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons, and offers unparalleled player freedom and choice.
You awaken aboard a Nautiloid ship that is crashing, and quickly discover you have been infected by an Illithid parasite that will see turn into an Illithid yourself.
What ensues is a sprawling RPG saga with many great characters, tense tactical turn-based combat and a lot of saucy encounters.
Lethal Company
If you have paid any attention to social media, you will no doubt have seen a short clip of players meeting their hilarious end as they strive to appease their bosses in Lethal Company.
Developed solely by Zeekerss, Lethal Company pits up to four players (or more with mods) on increasingly dangerous alien worlds filled with terrifying monsters to find scrap to bring back to their ship to pay off the corporate overlords.
What makes Lethal Company so special is its fantastic proximity chat, which makes for outrageously funny (and scary) moments as players suddenly scream and disappear.
Alan Wake 2
Remedy has knocked it out of the park once more, and has been recognised for its hard work at the Golden Joysticks and The Game Awards 2023.
Set 13 years after the original, players take control of the eponymous author and FBI agent Saga Anderson as they grapple with The Dark Place, where Mr Wake has been trapped since the events of the first game.
With terrific graphics and terrifying encounters, Alan Wake 2 feels like it constantly warps and bends the reality around us, and wears its homages to series such as Twin Peaks and Stephen King novels on its sleeves.
Buy now for £39.99 £31.99 (until 10/01/2024) from the Epic Games Store
Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon
Taking a break from its usual dark fantasy parlance (and toxic swamps), FromSoftware revisited the mech mercenary simulator series - and we're so glad they did, as Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is easily one of 2023's best games.
Contrary to prior FromSoftware titles, much attention was paid to the PC version of AC6, as it runs like a dream and can hit 120fps. Previous titles such as Elnden Ring and other Souls games were firmly locked to 60.
Ranked matchmaking was recently added, too, so you can expect some intense fights online.
AC6 takes place on the frontier planet, Rubicon 3, after humanity spread throughout the stars, and 50 years after a cataclysmic event known as the Fires of Ibis wreaked havoc on the star system.
The mysterious substance, Coral, was the source, and previously companies had tried to harness its power before it triggered the event. Traces have been found once more, and corporations are flocking to Rubicon 3 to exploit and control it, regardless of what happens to the planet and its inhabitants.
Players take control of pilot C4-621 operating under the handler Walter, and are thrown into the midst of a conflict rife with rebels and mercenaries alike.
Buy now from CDkeys for £39.99
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Cyberpunk 2077 and Phantom Liberty
Despite a rocky start, Cyberpunk 2077 is in a great place now, owing to the 2.0 and 2.1 updates that revamped huge swathes of the games.
The Phantom Liberty DLC is incredible, too, and adds hours of new content to the already beefy game - and even features Idris Elba!
Based on the world from the tabletop RPG Cyberpunk 2020, players take control of V, a mercenary who has been infected after a failed heist with a bio-chip containing an engram of the rock-star turned terrorist Johnny Silverhand (Keanu Reeves).
The engram threatens to replace V's consciousness, and the player must work with Silverhand to liberate each other from one another against the backdrop of Night City.
If you've got the rig to run it, the game looks unbelievable due to the overdrive path tracing mode that adds lifelike lighting to the game.
Buy Cyberpunk 2077 from Steam for £49.99 and the Phantom Liberty DLC from CDkeys for £20.99
Diablo 4
Another satisfying redemption arc – Diablo 4 has really come into its own since its release, and hacking and slashing hordes of demons has never felt better.
For those new to the longstanding series, players can choose a class and build a character to specialise in any number of abilities to beat back the forces of Lilith through sprawling dungeons, over land and in eviscerated towns.
New seasons have brought about tons of new content to the games, and regular patches have (mostly) fixed balancing issues.
There's also upcoming DLC which should widen the scope of the ARPG even further, no doubt making Sanctuary even more deadly than it already is.
Buy now from CDkeys for £55.99
Counter-Strike 2
The successor to CS:GO, Counter-Strike 2 acts as a direct replacement, and you can expect much of the same 5v5 round-based tactical goodness we have come to expect over the last two decades – and we're not bored of it yet!
Powered by the swanky new Source 2 engine used in Dota 2 and Half-Life: Alyx, CS2 is much brighter and more detailed than the decidedly ancient and grimy-looking CS:GO.
This makes seeing enemies much easier, and the new tech brings fresh additions such as volumetric smoke grenades that fill up 3D space that can be shot through for a quick peek or blasted away by grenades.
What's more, it's free and will only cost you your time (and potentially your sanity).
Download Counter-Strike 2 on Steam
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
Massive Entertainment has taken its already excellent Snowdrop Engine and created some of the most unbelievable visuals we've ever seen in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora.
The game sees you take control of a Na'vi raised by humans that have escaped the evil RDA's clutches, as you use both Na'vi and human skills to overthrow the militaristic corporation from the western continent of the planet Pandora.
Though it might appear a lot like Far Cry at first glance, it has much more in common with Crytek's Crysis, as you possess powers far beyond the capabilities of a human against a lush jungle backdrop.
If you don't like the standard Ubisoft open-world affair with checkmarks dotted across the place, you can turn on the "Explorer Mode", which instead gives you rough directions to tell you where to go - encouraging you to really explore the huge map, much as players did in The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind many moons ago.
Buy now from The Epic Game Store for £69.99
Elden Ring
With more 10/10 review scores than you shake a furled finger at, it is little wonder that Elden Ring became as popular as it did - although nobody could have predicted quite how huge it would become upon release.
PC is the perfect home for this massive game, but be warned, you will die a hell of a lot - and the urge to smash something does rear its ugly head quite frequently.
Buy now from CDKeys for £22.99
Fortnite
We realise that Fortnite isn't exactly what people have in mind when it comes to the best PC games, but in reality, it's one of them - and millions of players agree.
Fortnite has grown far beyond the scope of its original survival vision, and it acts more as a platform for other games or as a metaverse.
There is, of course, battle royale mode, but there's also the PvE mode Save the World, the new survival twist LEGO Fortnite, Rocket Racers and Fortnite Festival Mode, to just name a few.
You're bound to find something to like in Fortnite, and it's free – so definitely check it out!
Download Fortnite from the Epic Games Store
Stray
Stray, if you haven't already had the pleasure, is a game where you play as a cat in a post-apocalyptic world where lonely robots are your only companions. This contentious wildcard for Game of the Year is also, we think, one of the most clever and touching games on the market right now. And if you're a cat lover, it's simply a no-brainer.
It's a bit on the short side, but Stray looks gorgeous, plays well and is just a great experience. It would be a top way to spend a handful of hours happily on your PC.
Buy now from CD Keys for £17.99
Valheim
With its charming retro-inspired graphics and deep gameplay mechanics, Valheim was an instant hit, and the game has only gotten better since launch.
Set in a fantasy Viking world, you can team up with friends or play solo in an unforgiving Nordic land that wants you dead.
There are forboding bosses lurking in the land and you can build yourself a cosy settlement to retreat to and lick your wounds after a daring raid in the wilderness.
It can be had for very cheap, too, and will provide endless hours of fun - so we can't recommend it enough!
Buy now for £11.99 from CDKeys
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
The brilliant and bonkers Borderlands character Tiny Tina gets another spin-off with Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, and this time it's a full-blown game - and a darn good one at that!
While not a flawless release, it ended up being so much better than many of us had imagined, and it is fully deserving of a place on this list.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
It says a lot about the quality of a movie-based game if it actually improves on some of the films it is based on - that is the case with LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga.
This is the definitive LEGO Star Wars game, and is truly a joy from start to finish. It's so good that it even made us like Rise of the Skywalker a bit more (but not by much).
Galactic Civilisations 4
While certainly not a pick up and play for a fun and breezy time sort of game, Galactic Civilisations 4 is one that is super rewarding if you can dedicate the time and brains to really get your teeth into it.
Strategy is key here, so you will need to play with that mindset to have any chance of doing well. But stick with it and you'll likely realise that you have found your new obsession.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human
Anyone that loves zombies and/or parkour will likely have the time of their gaming life with Dying Light 2, a huge game with a ton to do and so many variations of infected looking to take you down.
It's tense, fun, and it plays brilliantly on PC. And if you didn't play the first, not to worry, you'll be able to jump into this easy enough - and it means you have a whole other game to play if you get on well with this one.
Buy now from CD Keys for £15.99
God of War
With God of War Ragnarök on the shelves, now is the perfect time to revisit the original game in the rebooted franchise - or play it for the first time if you never have. You'll need to play this before Ragnarök if you want to understand the story, so what are you waiting for?
A gripping storyline, wonderfully realised characters and super fun gameplay make this a must-play game that we can't help but revisit quite regularly.
Buy now from CDKeys for £16.99
Check out the best games on each platform:
- The very best PS5 games
- The best Xbox Series X games
- The best Nintendo Switch games ever
- Best Switch games for kids
Monster Hunter: Rise
The best game yet from Capcom's Monster Hunter series? Many have said so, and it's hard to argue against it, as this truly is a special game - and one that we never tire of.
Reviews for this were deservedly full of praise, and we love how smoothly it runs when you boot it up on PC - we can't recommend this game enough.
Total War: Warhammer 3
One of the kings of turn-based strategy games, Total War burst back onto our PCs with Total War: Warhammer 3, and it was everything that we wanted it to be and more.
This is truly a brilliant and addictive game, so be warned, it has the potential to eat up a lot of your time!
Buy now from CDKeys for £24.99
Halo Infinite
Halo Infinite did not have the easiest time in development by all accounts, and the pressure was on to deliver a stellar game following the lukewarm response to Halo 5.
Thankfully, Halo Infinite delivered and then some, and is a true return to form for Master Chief. If you found that you had lost interest in the franchise, then this is the perfect game to jump back in with.
Halo Infinite multiplayer is also free-to-play, and has seen something of a comeback as of late, with players reporting many of the issues found early on have been addressed.
Buy now from CDKeys for £49.69
Forza Horizon 5
Sticking with hugely successful Xbox franchises for a moment, Forza Horizon 5 is by far the most stunning of the games to date - not too surprising considering that it was the first to be made for the now current generation consoles.
The Mexico setting is a gorgeous as you would expect from Forza, and there is so much to do that we are still finding new things long after release - if you love racing games then this is a no-brainer.
Football Manager 2024
The Football Manager series has been going as long as we can remember, and it shows no sign of slowing down - we had just as much fun with the latest game as we have had with the best of the series.
So, prep your teams and get them match ready - fingers crossed you can nab enough points to keep your job!
Buy now from CDKeys for £25.99
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