The 15 Most Cinematic Video Games, Ranked

Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment Updated Jul 28, 2026, 8:14 AM EDT Barbara James is a writer for Collider and a content creator. Currently, she works at Screen Rant as an Video Game Features Writer. As a graduate with a major in English, Barbara has worked as an editor for digital platforms for three years. Outside of digital media, she has edited professionally for six years. Meanwhile, she has written creatively for 10+ years and professionally for four years. She enjoys watching films and TV shows of a wide variety. Some genres she considers herself an expert in include K-dramas, anime, horror, and disaster films. Barbara knows the struggle of wanting to find a good show or film to watch, but with the ever-expanding industry and endless content to choose from, she understands how difficult it can be to pick a good show out of the masses. She writes to help others find the right show that is worth the watch. Sign in to your Collider account The gaming world is ever-expanding and ever-growing, with plenty of fun new games released every year. Each new console generation comes with more and more technically advanced games with high-resolution graphics, complex stories, and detailed crafting systems. Each generation is better than the last, and the future of games will only continue to get better. While graphics aren't necessarily required or important, the graphics of games play into the aesthetic or intended style of the game itself, which can be important, depending on the content of the game. For example, while wildly popular and aesthetically pleasing to the eye, Stardew Valley is not necessarily a cinematic game, nor is its gameplay or game mechanics. Having a cinematic quality is not a requirement of current or future games, but it's a much-welcome addition to the story or game. These are the most cinematic games of all time that stand out because of the sheer, breathtaking quality of their visuals. 15 'Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice' (2017) Arguably the magnum opus of long-time development team Ninja Theory, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice offers the perfect balance between a gripping, emotional cinematic story with exceptional visuals and dynamic gameplay to make for one of the must-play experiences of the 2010s. The dark fantasy video game sees the player as the titular Senua, a Pict warrior fighting her way to Helheim by defeating otherworldly entities to rescue the soul of her dead lover from the goddess Hela. The defining strength that continues to give Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice a cinematic edge even among many modern releases is its groundbreaking usage of motion capture performances to give raw, emotional strength to the story and performances. It gives the game a real sense of artistry and character that simply isn't captured nearly as well in other narrative games, largely thanks to the masterful motion capture performance and voice acting of Melina Juergens as Senua, a performance she would win the Game Award for Best Performance over the likes of Ashly Burch for Horizon Zero Dawn and Laura Bailey for Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. —Robert Lee 14 'Horizon Zero Dawn' (2017) Image via Guerilla Games Horizon Zero Dawn is a 2017 action-roleplaying game following Aloy, a hunter-gatherer cast out of the Nora tribe following her birth. Raised by fellow outcast Rost, Aloy discovers an augmented reality device that gives her special abilities, and she ventures out to discover the Old World. Initially released in 2017, Horizon Zero Dawn was advertised as an open-world game, garnering attention for its crafting system and its beautiful gameplay. Horizon Zero Dawn may have eventually gotten a remaster, but it stood out from the beginning for its beautiful graphics, which few other games could compete with. The impressive detail and lush, colorful atmosphere in Horizon Zero Dawn's cutscenes are immersive and vibrant, with it becoming a benchmark for future open-world games. 13 'Until Dawn' (2015) Image via Supermassive Games Until Dawn is an interactive horror game where the player assumes control of characters who were invited to a family cabin out in the snowy mountains. The player can make decisions that affect the latter half of the game. Though it was originally developed for the PlayStation 3, the highly-awaited Until Dawn was released on the PlayStation 4. Positively received by critics and audiences, its beautiful graphics in a horrific atmosphere are most remembered. The game plays out almost like a movie, a quality it shares with most of Supermassive Games' video games. Indeed, popular entries like the Dark Anthology series or The Quarry stemmed from the success of Until Dawn. It's such a beautiful piece of gaming that it has been remade for the PlayStation 5, though it is hard to deny the impressive graphics of the original. 12 'Life is Strange' (2015) Image via Square Enix One of the earliest icons of dynamic, well-crafted original interactive stories in the realm of video games, Life is Strange is a blend of sci-fi, coming-of-age, and choose-your-own-adventure that took the world by storm in 2015. Releasing in episodic format across five episodes throughout the year, Life is Strange still stands as one of the best examples of narrative fluidity and artistic brilliance within video game storytelling. Life is Strange is far from the only story-based game to utilize the episodic format for its release, yet it's arguably the most successful and iconic usage of this concept in terms of creating a complete cinematic experience out of its story and characters. It parallels a lot of great coming-of-age films while also taking the steps to delve into deeper, more taboo subject matter and honing in on small, finer details thanks to the medium of gaming as a whole. Its emotional moments also hit that much harder when the player themselves is making the choices and choosing the painful sacrifices. —Robert Lee 11 'Final Fantasy XV' (2016) Image via Square Enix Final Fantasy XV is a PlayStation 4 game that was released in 2016. Following a dethroned Prince Noctis, he must take back the throne that was lost to Niflheim when the crystal was stolen. Final Fantasy XV has been one of the most controversial Final Fantasy games to release in recent years due to its production issues. Originally named Final Fantasy Versus XIII for the PlayStation 3 as part of the Fabula Nova Crystallis series, the game was finally and officially re-developed into Final Fantasy XV. The Final Fantasy series has been known for being graphically beautiful, as seen with its prior entries, Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy IX, and even Final Fantasy Type-0. But despite the complications, the release of Final Fantasy XV met the expectations of fans globally, especially with its Omen trailer that dropped prior to the game's release. The switch between gameplay and cutscenes is unbelievably smooth, and the graphics blend well enough that it was difficult to tell when players were watching gameplay or cutscenes. 10 'Detroit: Become Human' (2018) Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment Released on the PlayStation 4, Detroit: Become Human follows the lives of three androids who learn to defend themselves against the oppressive system or align themselves with it and act accordingly. Unlike most games, Detroit: Become Human continues until every story is completed, either via resolution or death. Detroit: Become Human is similar to Until Dawn in terms of gameplay mechanics. Like the former, Detroit: Become Human focuses mostly on cinematic, quick-time events, blending the gameplay with the cutscenes and making it feel as though the player is watching a movie and can pick the paths that these characters go on. And though the ending is absolutely tragic, Detroit: Become Human's movie-like aesthetic makes it a wonderful and meaningful cinematic video game. 9 'Yakuza 0' (2015) Image via SEGA Acting as a prequel origin story for the two most prominent characters in the Yakuza franchise, Yakuza 0 is an exceptional blend of wild creativity and hard-hitting crime drama that makes it the undeniable height of the franchise. The game shifts back and forth between two distinct stories, following the likes of both Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima as they both navigate the criminal underworld, engage in street fights, and do their best to uphold their moral standards in the dangerous underbelly of 1988 Japan. While the franchise may be largely known for its absurd and chaotic side-quests, the main stories at the center of Yakuza 0 are incredibly cinematic in scope and scale. Complete with great twists, emotional performances, and an effective mixture of action and drama, it stands as not just the best story of the franchise, but arguably one of the best crime stories in the world of video games. —Robert Lee Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you'd actually make it out of alive. 💊The Matrix 🔥Mad Max 🌧️Blade Runner 🏜️Dune 🚀Star Wars TEST YOUR SURVIVAL → 01 You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one. APull on every thread until I understand the system — then figure out how to break it. BStop asking questions and start stockpiling — food, fuel, weapons. Questions don't keep you alive. CKeep my head down, observe carefully, and trust no one until I know who's pulling the strings. DStudy the patterns. Every system has a rhythm — learn it, and you learn how to survive it. EFind the people fighting back and join them. You can't fix a broken galaxy alone. NEXT QUESTION → 02 In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires. AKnowledge. If you understand the system, you don't need resources — you can generate them. BFuel. Everything else — movement, power, escape — runs on it. CTrust. In a world of fakes and informants, a truly reliable ally is rarer than any commodity. DWater. And after water, information — the two things empires are truly built on. EShips and credits. The galaxy is big — you survive it by being able to move through it freely. NEXT QUESTION → 03 What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you're honest about what you're actually afraid of. AThat reality itself is a lie — that everything I experience has been constructed to keep me compliant. BA raid. No warning, no mercy — just the roar of engines and then nothing left. CBeing identified. Once someone with power decides you're a problem, you're already out of time. DBeing outmanoeuvred — losing a political game I didn't even know I was playing. EThe Empire tightening its grip until there's nowhere left to run. NEXT QUESTION → 04 How do you deal with authority you don't trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything. ASubvert it from the inside — learn its rules well enough to weaponise them against it. BIgnore it and stay out of its reach. The further from any power structure, the better. CAppear to comply while doing exactly what I need to do. Visibility is the enemy. DManoeuvre within it carefully. You can't beat a system you refuse to understand. EResist openly when I have to. Some things are worth the risk of being seen. NEXT QUESTION → 05 Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn't just tactical — it's physical, psychological, and very much about where you are. AUnderground bunkers and server rooms — cramped, artificial, but with access to everything that matters. BOpen wasteland — brutal sun, no shelter, constant movement. At least the threat is honest. CA dense, rain-soaked city where you can disappear into the crowd and nobody asks questions. DMerciless desert — extreme heat, no water, and something enormous living beneath the sand. EThe fringe — backwater planets and busy spaceports where the Empire's attention rarely reaches. NEXT QUESTION → 06 Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are. AA tight crew of believers who've seen behind the curtain and have nothing left to lose. BOne or two people I'd trust with my life. Any more than that and someone talks. CNobody, ideally. Alliances are liabilities. I work alone unless I have no choice. DA community bound by shared hardship and mutual survival — people who need each other to last. EA ragtag team with wildly different skills and total commitment when it counts. NEXT QUESTION → 07 Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they're actually made of. AI won't harm the innocent — even the ones who'd report me without hesitation. BI do what I have to to protect the people I've chosen. Everything else is negotiable. CThe line shifts depending on who's asking and what's at stake. DI draw a long-term line — nothing that compromises my people's future, even if it'd help now. ESome lines, once crossed, can't be uncrossed. I know which ones they are. NEXT QUESTION → 08 What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another. AWaking others up — dismantling the illusion so no one else has to live inside it. BFinding somewhere — or someone — worth protecting. A reason to keep moving. CAnswers. Understanding what I am, what any of this means, before time runs out. DLegacy — shaping the future in a way that outlasts me by generations. EFreedom — for myself, for others, for every world still living under someone else's boot. REVEAL MY WORLD → Your Fate Has Been Calculated You'd Survive In…Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for. The MatrixYou took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You're a systems thinker who can't help but notice the seams in things. You're drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it. You'd find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines' worst nightmare. You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it. The Matrix built an airtight prison. You'd be the one probing the walls for the door. Mad MaxThe wasteland doesn't reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That's you. You don't need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon. You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you're good at all three. You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider. In the wasteland, that distinction is everything. Blade RunnerYou'd survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely. You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer. In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional. You're not a hero. But you're not lost, either. In Blade Runner's world, that distinction is everything. DuneArrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards. Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they're survival tools. You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory. Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You'd learn its logic and earn its respect. In time, you wouldn't just survive Arrakis — you'd begin to reshape it. Star WarsThe galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn't have it any other way. You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion. You'd gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire's grip can be broken. You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn't something you're capable of. In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference. ↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ 8 'Red Dead Redemption 2' (2018) Image via Rockstar Games A prequel to the famous and well-loved Red Dead Redemption, Red Dead Redemption 2 follows the story of Arthur Morgan, who is part of the Van der Linde gang. The game tracks Arthur as he completes various missions and answers questions. Spending over eight years in development after the original's release, Red Dead Redemption 2 proved to be a massive success. Following in the steps of its acclaimed predecessor, Red Dead Redemption follows a cinematic storyline with outstanding in-game visuals and evocative music that make the gameplay look as though it were a cutscene. Red Dead Redemption 2 crafts one of the most immersive open-world video games filled with immaculate details that make its lifelike, game-changing visual approach feel all the more real. 7 'The Last of Us' (2013) Image via Naughty Dog The Last of Us, developed by Naughty Dog, is probably one of the greatest games of the 2010s, considering its story is an emotional ride from start to finish. It centers on the main character, Joel, as he navigates life after the loss of his daughter. He is soon assigned to protect a young girl, Ellie, who is immune to the zombie-infected world. Though horrifying on all levels, The Last of Us is an incredibly emotional story that speaks to viewers in more ways than one. Some of the most spectacular gameplay scenes play out cinematically, creating ethereal and gorgeously melancholic scenes between Ellie and Joel, ultimately deepening their connection. Although the sequel stands out just as much graphically, if not better, the cinematics for the first game help in telling a story of grief. Of course, The Last of Us spawned a critically acclaimed HBO adaptation, adding to its legacy. 6 'Mortal Kombat 1' (2023) Image via Warner Bros. Games Released in 2023, Mortal Kombat 1 is essentially the start of a new universe, as explained in the game. With Lui Kang as the protector of the Earthrealm, he quickly learns that someone else has messed with his timeline by giving powers to those who once wreaked havoc. The Mortal Kombat franchise is not known for its beautiful graphics or cinematic cutscenes. Rather, it is famous for its gore and fatalities, and the story has always been a secondary concern to the fighting game. However, Mortal Kombat 1 does something slightly different compared to the others: it creates a story that relies on cinematic gameplay, blending awe-inspiring, realistic graphics with intense violence to create a surprisingly beautiful fighting game that none other can compete with.