Top 15 Dystopian Games

A dystopia is a world that’s either lawless or ruled by a totalitarian government, with a society full of struggle, hopelessness, and suffering. Different forms of media have delved into the concept of a dystopia, like George Orwell’s 1984 or films like Blade Runner. This time, however, we’re talking about video games that have explored dystopian themes.

15. Mirror’s Edge

(PlayStation/PC/XBox)

Mirror’s Edge is a game where you play as a parkour courier trying to deliver things and information all while avoiding surveillance and security. It takes you toin a beautiful, shining city, navigating it with parkour mechanics advanced for its time.

14. Dishonored (PlayStation/PC/XBox)

Set in a Victorian, steampunk- style city called Dunwall, Dishonored is about a man out for revenge. The game has good stealth mechanics balanced with some superpowers and gives the player different approaches to finishing missions. It’s a must- play for anyone who hasn’t yet.

13. Remember Me (PlayStation/PC/XBox)

A Capcom entry in this list about Paris 2084 and memories being a commodity. Not as popular as the other games on this list, but its fine representation of a dystopia makes the game well worth your while.

12. Death Stranding (PlayStation/PC)

Death Stranding is set in a future where the world has collided with the afterlife, creatures called beached things (BTs) haunt the earth, and rainfall ages anything it comes into contact with. As Sam Porter Bridges, your job is to connect different knot cities, waystations, delivery centers, and preppers to ensure the future of the world. You’ve never played something like it before, and it retains Hideo Kojima’s style of movie-like games.

11. Cyberpunk 2077 (PlayStation/XBox/PC)

With all the hype it has gathered over the course of 8 years or so, many were anxiously waiting for the release of CD Projekt Red’s ambitious project, Cyberpunk 2077. Despite being heavily criticized for its seemingly unfinished release and bugs, with some patches and fixes, Cyberpunk is still one of the best games out there. With an impressive environment in Night City, various body modifications you could give your character, and loads of quests to do, the game provides an entertaining spectacle and will have you hooked for days on end.

10. Papers, Please

A well-received, indie puzzle/simulation game, Papers, Please puts you in the shoes of a border inspector, allowing you to determine who to admit, keep out, or arrest in the fictional communist country of Artostzka. It’s the communist dystopia the game’s set in that puts on this list, and a simple dude trying to make ends meet as a border inspector possessing that much power over other people’s fates and lives, it’s pretty dark and deep if you think about it.

9. Metro 2033 (PlayStation/XBox/PC)

This game takes place in the metro system of a post-apocalyptic Moscow where you try to survive as you fight monsters. There are various weapons to use, mutants to be shot, and loads of fun to be had.

8. Horizon Zero Dawn (PlayStation/PC)

Hailed as one of Sony’s best exclusives that only recently made its way to PC, Horizon Zero Dawn boasts a world that’s futuristic, yet uncivilized and untamed. Dealing with humans’ fear of machines and choice to start over, Aloy defends herself from robotic animals with weapons like bows and spears, in a setting that’s described as “post- post-apocalyptic”.

7. Deus Ex: Human Revolution (PlayStation/XBox/PC)

It’s an action RPG wherein you play as a mechanically augmented specialist Adam Jensen. Containing shooter and stealth elements coupled with a dystopian setting and moral themes, the game is as entertaining as it is nuanced.

6. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PlayStation)

Another Kojima entry on this list, this time from the franchise that made him a household name in the gaming world, this game deals with political and moral themes, and the stealth action elements of its gameplay does not disappoint, either. It’s also one that possesses Kojima’s signature movie-like style of making games, holding the record for the longest video game cutscene ever.

5. Final Fantasy VII Remake (PlayStation)

A remake of a 1997 classic, visually improved yet retaining the heart and soul of the original. The cyberpunk dystopia of Midgar, gaming’s most iconic and recognizable faces, and the rebellious elements of the game, not to mention its overall quality, places it high on this list, and deservedly so.

4. Bioshock Infinite (PlayStation/XBox/PC)

Bioshock Infinite is regarded as one of the best video games of the seventh generation. The third-highest rated video game of 2013 according to MetaCritic, it’s a shooter that boasts both a compelling narrative and a unique setting. 

3. Half-Life 2 (XBox/PC)

Half-Life 2 is considered one of the best games ever made, and for good reason. Set in a world where Gordon Freeman defies the odds to free the world from aliens, it’s one of, if not the best first-person shooter game ever released.

2. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PlayStation/PC/XBox)

The third Hideo Kojima entry on this list and the second entry in the Metal Gear franchise, Sons of Liberty, exhibits the dangers posed by information control by governments or other powerful organizations. This game is often regarded as the best in the franchise, and the themes explored in its narrative can easily be applied to what’s going on today (i.e. fake news). It’s one of the greatest video games ever, and it’s one that explores a lot of dystopian themes.

1. Fallout: New Vegas (PlayStation/XBox/PC)

Set in a post-apocalyptic world where people are dealing with nuclear fallout in their own unique ways. This action RPG lets you journey as a courier in New Vegas, make friends and enemies along the way, and determine the fate of Mojave Wasteland.